Working as a domestic cleaner puts one at a significantly higher risk of developing asthma, as reported by Spanish researchers. Asthma, which affects over 100 million people worldwide, has been linked to cleaning work, but this study was the first to distinguish between cleaning in different environments.
![Domestic cleaning increases asthma risk Domestic cleaning increases asthma risk](https://drop.ndtv.com/images/story-noimage.png?q=50)
It is important that employers take the necessary steps to help protect their staff and that the general public is aware of the risks of inhaling certain chemicals, including cleaning products. This had proved to be the best way to identify a large group of domestic cleaners, a predominantly female occupation, and a job that tends not to have a formal contract. It also gave researchers a control group with a similar socio-economic profile. The study was part of a wider effort to understand why global asthma rates are rising on average by 50 percent every decade. The new message is that people who clean private homes are most at risk. What is needed now is to find out what specific products are linked to this risk. These preliminary investigations point towards cleaning products containing irritants, particularly bleach, and vapours created by inappropriate combinations of those products.
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