February - 2017 - issue > CXO Insights
The Air You Breathe at Home May Not Be All That Pure
Mahesh Anand, President, Decorative Paint Division, Nippon Paint
Redecorating one's home is always an exciting prospect. It's finally time to make the home the way one perceived it to be...new wooden cabinets, beautiful drapes and tapestry on the freshly painted walls, and so on. You can picture yourself sitting on that inviting, well cushioned couch that you have had your eyes on, feet up on the ottoman. You take a deep breath in contentment. You can feel and smell a wonderful newness. Well almost. What you probably never felt or realized is that with every deep breath, you are most probably also inhaling a pungent, colorless, flammable, carcinogenic gas called Formaldehyde. The furniture, drapes and tapestry you thought to be innocuous are usually the main sources of the indoor emission.
What Exactly is Formaldehyde?
Formaldehyde is a colorless, flammable, strong-smelling chemical that is used in building materials and to produce many household products. It is used in pressed-wood products, such as particleboard, plywood, and fiberboard; glues and adhesives; permanent-press fabrics; paper product coatings; and certain insulation materials. In addition, formaldehyde is commonly used as an industrial fungicide, germicide, and disinfectant, and as a preservative in mortuaries and medical laboratories. Formaldehyde also occurs naturally in the environment. It is produced in small amounts by most living organisms as part of normal metabolic processes.
Exposure to Formaldehyde
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