benzene toxicity

8/9/2019 Benzene Toxicity

1/3

HEALTH HAZARDS OF CHRONIC EXPOSURE TO BENZENE, A TYPICAL

VOLATILE ORGANIC CHEMICAL (VOC).

1Akinduko D.S. &

1Chukwuemelie Z.

1. Department of Chemical Pathology, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan,

Nigeria.

ABSTRACT

According to EUR-Lex, European Union Publications Office (2010), volatile organic chemicals

are organic compounds having an initial boiling point less than or equal to 2500C measured at a

standard atmospheric pressure of 101kPa and can do damage to visual or audible senses. VOCs

can cause a variety of health effects depending on the chemical. Harmful VOCs are typically not

acutely toxic but instead have compounding long-term (chronic) health effects. The exhaled

human breath contains a few hundred volatile organic chemicals and is used in breath analysis to

serve as a VOC biomarker to test for diseases such as lung cancer (Buszewski et al , 2007). Itappears that VOC compounds in the body may be either produced by metabolic processes or

inhaled/absorbed from exogenous sources such as environmental tobacco smoke (Mazzone,

2008). Exposure to tobacco smoke-related chemicals is widely believed to pose significant health

risks (Sydney et al , 2002). Sasco and Vaino (1999) suggested that prenatal or childhood passive

exposure to parents’ smoking significantly increases the risk of childhood and adult cancers.

Benzene as a major VOC: Studies by Jo & Pack (2000) showed that active cigarette smoking

directly affects the levels of benzene and other VOCs in breath and blood. According to Wallace

(1996), smokers receive 89% of their benzene exposure directly from smoking; non-smokers

derive about 10% of their exposure from environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). According to

Cancer Research UK, tobacco smoke contains large amounts of benzene and accounts for a big

proportion of our exposure to this poison. The average smoker inhales about ten times more

benzene than the average non-smokers. The United State Environmental Protection Agency

(1997) classified benzene as a group A human carcinogen because of is hematotoxicity which

thus predisposes exposed individuals to acute myeloid leukaemia.

Also, benzene known to be emitted from gas flares in undocumented quantities is well

recognized as a cause for leukemia and other blood-related diseases (Tawari and Abowei, 2012).

Gas flaring is one of the hottest environmental issues in Nigeria (Tawari and Abowei, 2012),

particularly in the Niger Delta region. Flaring is the controlled burning of the waste natural gas

associated with oil production (Bassel, 1981). While flaring in the West has been minimized, in Nigeria it has grown proportionally with oil production (Baird, 2010). Gas flares have potentially

harmful effects on the health and livelihood of the communities in their vicinity, as they release a

variety of poisonous chemicals (Tawari and Abowei, 2012) which include benzene.

Comment: The write-up is based on a systematic review of articles in an attempt to update our

knowledge on the potential health hazards of chronic exposure to volatile organic chemicals

(VOCs) of which benzene is a prominent example.


2/3

Conclusion: A variety of hazards are caused by volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) depending on

the chemical, and chronic exposure to benzene in particular, may predispose an individual to

cancer.

References

1. Baird, J., (July 26, 2010). Oil's Shame in Africa. Newsweek, 27.

2. Bassal, F., (1981). Analysis of air pollutant. John Wiley and Sons, New-York, pp: 86.

3. Buszewski Boguslaw, Kesy Martyna, Ligor Tomasz, Amann Anton (2007). “Human

exhaled air analytics: biomarkers of diseases”. Biomedical Chromatography 21(6): 553-

566

4. CANCER RESEARCH UK- (http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-

info/healthyliving/smokingandtobacco/whatsinacigarette/smoking-and-cancer-whats-in-

a-cigarette)

5. EUR/Lex, European Union Publications Office. Retrieved on 2010-09-28. Directive

2004/42/CE of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 on thelimitation of emissions of volatile organic compounds due to the use of organic solvents

in certain paints and varnishes and vehicle refinishing products.

International Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 1(2): 94-117.

6. Jo W-K, Pack K-W, (2000). Utilization of breath analysis for exposure estimates of

benzene associated with active smoking. Environ Res A83:180 – 187.

7. Mazzone PJ (2008). “Analysis of volatile organic compounds in the exhaled breath for

the diagnosis of lung cancer”. Journal of thoracic oncology: official publication of the

International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer 3(7): 774-80

8. Sasco AJ, Vainio H, (1999). From in utero and childhood exposure to parental smoking

to childhood cancer: a possible link and the need for action. Hum Exp Toxicol 18:192 – 201.

9. Sydney M. Gordon, Lance A. Wallace, Marielle C. Brinkman, Patrick J. Callahan, and

Donald V. Kenny (2002). Volatile Organic Compounds as Breath Biomarkers for Activeand Passive Smoking. Environ Health Perspect 110: 689 – 698

http://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2002/110p689-698gordon/abstract.html

10. Tawari CC, and Abowei JFN, (2012). Air Pollution in the Niger Delta Area of Nigeria

11. U.S. EPA (1997). Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) on Benzene. Cincinnati,OH:Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

12. Wallace LA, (1996). Environmental exposure to benzene: an update. Environ Health

Perspect 104(6): 1129 – 1136.

Corresponding Author: [email protected]

VOCs can cause a variety of health effects depending on the chemical. Harmful VOCs are

typically not acutely toxic but instead have compounding long-term (chronic) health effects. It

appears that VOC compounds in the body (particularly benzene) may be a direct result of

inhalation from exogenous sources such as environmental tobacco smoke, and gas flaring.

http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/healthyliving/smokingandtobacco/whatsinacigarette/smoking-and-cancer-whats-in-a-cigarettehttp://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/healthyliving/smokingandtobacco/whatsinacigarette/smoking-and-cancer-whats-in-a-cigarettehttp://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/healthyliving/smokingandtobacco/whatsinacigarette/smoking-and-cancer-whats-in-a-cigarettehttp://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/healthyliving/smokingandtobacco/whatsinacigarette/smoking-and-cancer-whats-in-a-cigarettehttp://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/healthyliving/smokingandtobacco/whatsinacigarette/smoking-and-cancer-whats-in-a-cigarettehttp://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2002/110p689-698gordon/abstract.htmlhttp://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2002/110p689-698gordon/abstract.htmlmailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2002/110p689-698gordon/abstract.htmlhttp://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/healthyliving/smokingandtobacco/whatsinacigarette/smoking-and-cancer-whats-in-a-cigarettehttp://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/healthyliving/smokingandtobacco/whatsinacigarette/smoking-and-cancer-whats-in-a-cigarettehttp://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/healthyliving/smokingandtobacco/whatsinacigarette/smoking-and-cancer-whats-in-a-cigarette


3/3

According to Cancer Research UK, tobacco smoke contains large amounts of benzene and

accounts for a big proportion of our exposure to this poison. The average smoker inhales about

ten times more benzene than the average non-smokers. The United State Environmental

Protection Agency (1997) classified benzene as a group A human carcinogen because of is

hematotoxicity which thus predisposes exposed individuals to acute myeloid leukaemia. Gas

flaring remains a serious environmental issue in Nigeria’s Niger Delta region, and can potentially

cause harmful effects on the health and wellbeing of exposed individuals in its vicinity as it

releases a variety of poisonous chemicals, which also include benzene.

Conclusion: A variety of hazards are caused by volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) depending on

the chemical, and chronic exposure to benzene in particular, may predispose an individual to

cancer.

benzene toxicity

Documents