Whenever you rest your head on a soft memory foam pillow, you may be surrounded by a peculiar odour. This odour is often faint, and while some people find it refreshing, others feel indescribably uncomfortable. But just what the heck is the odour emanating from memory foam pillows? Is it a chemical residue? Or does it have a deeper cause? To solve this mystery, let's delve into the hidden secrets behind memory foam pillows.
What chemicals are in the odour of memory foam products?
If you find that the memory foam pillow or memory foam product you bought has an odour, don't use it! Although the manufacturer said that these smells will be emitted after a few days, but do you believe it? Because the sales side may be for these odours are what closed mouth, or ask three, is it they do not know, or not willing to disclose it?
According to authoritative test reports, these odours contain chemicals that are mainly pollutants such as formaldehyde, benzene, ammonia and TVOC. In addition to these four main substances, there are some trace amounts of difficult to decompose composite substances. These three chemical substances come from low-priced polyurethane raw materials containing a large number of impurities, as well as the use of "black material" foaming manufacturers.
So what harm do they do?
Hazards of Benzene
The gas, which is colorless with a distinctive aroma It has been deemed as a carcinogen by World Health Organization as a powerful carcinogen. The benzene gas is the main factor in an improve on the percentage of kids diagnosed with leukaemia in recent times. If people breathe in high levels of benzene over a brief duration the result is anaesthesia in the central nervous system, which can lead to headache, dizziness, nausea or chest tightness, vomiting weakness as well as. And in extreme instances, it could cause coma or even death due to respiratory or circulatory system malfunction! If prolonged exposure to a particular concentration of benzene will result in chronic poisoning, headaches, depression, insomnia and memory loss, among other signs of neurasthenia.
Hazards of Formaldehyde
Formaldehyde is an irritant gas with a strong colour which has been classified in the World Health Organization as carcinogenic and teratogenic compounds. Formaldehyde is a pollutant that causes eye tears, corneas conjunctiva inflammation and congestion and skin allergies, nasal discomfort and cough, as well as chronic and acute bronchitis as well as other respiratory ailments, which can cause nausea, vomiting, and gastrointestinal issues! In extreme cases it may cause chronic headaches and pulmonary oedema, pneumonia as well as loss of appetite as well as death.
In the long run, exposure to small doses of formaldehyde can trigger chronic respiratory conditions eye disorders, menstrual disturbances and disorders such as pregnancy problems, neonatal malformations and depression and mental illness to contributing to a decline in baby's physical condition, which results in the development of heart disease in children. According to the U.S. Department of Medicine survey, formaldehyde release pollution is the main cause of asthma in children aged 3-5 years old increased.
The Danger of Ammonia
Ammonia is a colorless and strongly irritating smelling gas that is heavier that air (specific gravity 0.5). Ammonia is a chemical that is alkaline which has corrosive as well as irritating effects on skin tissues that come into contact with it. It can also absorb water from the skin tissue, cause tissue proteins denature, and cause tissue fat saponification. It also destroys its cell's membrane. In addition to the corrosive effect when the concentration is too high, it can also cause cardiac arrest and respiratory arrest through the reverse action of trigeminal nerve endings.
Ammonia is normally taken in by the body in the form of an alveoli gas. When inhaled into the lung, ammonia is easily absorbed into the bloodstream via the alveoli and is able to combine with haemoglobin, which destroys its oxygen-transport function. Ammonia's solubility is very high, which means that it has a primarily irritating and corrosive effect on airways of the upper respiratory tract in animals and humans, which weakens the body's immunity to illness. Ammonia in small amounts is neutralized by carbon dioxide, while the remainder is absorbed into bloodstream and is excreted through sweat, urine or in the respiratory tract. People who are exposed to ammonia over prolonged periods may experience signs such as skin discoloration or finger ulcers. the inhalation of a short-term amount of ammonia following tear, sore throat hoarseness, cough bloody sputum dyspnoea, chest tightness, is often associated with headache, dizziness nausea, vomiting fatigue and fatigue. In extreme cases, pulmonary oedema. adults with respiratory distress syndrome and irritations to the respiratory tract can be observed. This means that the harm done by alkaline compounds to tissues is much more severe than the damage caused by acidic substances.
Hazards of TVOC
Volatile organic compounds (TVOC) refers to compounds with a boiling point of 50 - 250, according to its chemical structure, to be further divided into eight categories; alkanes, aromatic hydrocarbons, alkenes, halogenated hydrocarbons, aldehydes, ketones, and other categories. In the non-industrial indoor environment, 50-300 volatile compounds can be found. They all occur in trace and measured levels, with each compound rarely exceeding the 50 time mg/m3 level.TVOC can cause dysregulation of the body's immune level, affecting the function of the central nervous system, with self-conscious symptoms such as dizziness, headache, lethargy, weakness, and chest tightness; it may also affect the digestive system, with loss of appetite and nausea, and in severe cases, it can damage the liver and the haematopoietic system, and neurotoxicity can be seen.
Conclusion
These volatile odours, in the memory foam industry will not reach the high concentration of short-term fatalities described in the article, but if there are odourless, environmentally friendly and healthy options, why not? As long as you don't use inferior raw materials, use advanced foaming formulas, eliminate the use of state regulations can not be used in the use of black materials, relying on our current mature all-water foaming technology, it is entirely possible to produce odourless memory foam pillows to meet market demand. However, the cost must be slightly higher.
