Featured Research

from universities, journals, and other organizations

The skinny on how shed skin reduces indoor air pollution

Date:

May 11, 2011

Source:

American Chemical Society

Summary:

The flakes of skin that people shed at the rate of 500 million cells every day are not just a nuisance -- the source of dandruff, for instance, and a major contributor to house dust. A new study concludes that oil in those skin cells makes a small contribution to reducing indoor air pollution.

Share This

Flakes of skin that people shed at the rate of 500 million cells every day are not just a nuisance -- the source of dandruff, for instance, and a major contributor to house dust. They actually can be beneficial.

Flakes of skin that people shed at the rate of 500 million cells every day are not just a nuisance -- the source of dandruff, for instance, and a major contributor to house dust. They actually can be beneficial. A new study, published in the American Chemical Society's journal, Environmental Science & Technology, concludes that oil in those skin cells makes a small contribution to reducing indoor air pollution.

Related Articles

Charles Weschler and colleagues explain that humans shed their entire outer layer of skin every 2-4 weeks at the rate of 0.001 -- 0.003 ounces of skin flakes every hour. Those flakes contain skin oils, including cholesterol and "squalene," and are a major constituent of the dust that accumulates on tables and other surfaces in homes and offices. Past research suggested that squalene from passengers' skin had a role in reducing levels of ozone -- a pollutant that can irritate the eyes, nose and throat and worsen asthma symptoms -- from the air in airplane cabins.

"It is only within the last five years that we've grown to appreciate the central role that squalene (from human skin oil) plays in oxidation chemistry within indoor environments," the report notes. "More than half of the ozone removal measured in a simulated aircraft cabin was found to be a consequence of ozone reacting with exposed, skin, hair, and clothing of passengers."

In the new study, the scientists set out to make the first extensive determinations of cholesterol and squalene in dust in homes and daycare centers and to figure out how these substances affect indoor air pollution. The scientists analyzed dust samples collected from 500 bedrooms of children aged 3-5 and the 151 daycare centers the children attended in the city of Odense, Denmark and its surroundings as part of the Danish Indoor Environment and Children's Health Study.

Among their findings: "Squalene in settled dust … contributes, in a small way, to the indoor removal of ozone," reducing indoor ozone levels roughly 2 to 15 percent.

The authors acknowledge funding from the Villum Foundation and FORMAS.

More From ScienceDaily

More Earth & Climate News

Featured Research

Mar. 3, 2015 — Attendance at schools exposed to high levels of traffic-related air pollution is linked to slower cognitive development among 7- to 10-year-old children in Barcelona, according to a new ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — While studying a ground-nesting bird population near El Reno, Okla., a research team found that stress during a severe weather outbreak of May 31, 2013, had manifested itself into malformations in ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Researchers studied quartz from the San Andreas Fault at the microscopic scale, the scale at which earthquake-triggering stresses originate. The results could one day lead to a better understanding ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — The 3-D printing scene, a growing favorite of do-it-yourselfers, has spread to the study of plasma physics. With a series of experiments, researchers have found that 3-D printers can be an important ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Researchers have developed a new way of rapidly screening yeasts that could help produce more sustainable biofuels. The new technique could also be a boon in the search for new ways of deriving ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — For almost a century, scientists have been puzzled by a process that is crucial to much of the life in Earth's oceans: Why does calcium carbonate, the tough material of seashells and corals, ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Major cities in the UK are falling behind their international counterparts in terms of their use of smart technologies, according to a new study. The research has found that smart cities in the UK, ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — To simulate chimp behavior, scientists created a computer model based on equations normally used to describe the movement of atoms and molecules in a confined space. An interdisciplinary research ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Rather than just waiting patiently for any pollinator that comes their way to start the next generation of seeds, some plants appear to recognize the best suitors and 'turn on' to increase the chance ... full story

Featured Videos

Looted and Leaking, South Sudan's Oil Wells Pose Health Risk

AFP (Mar. 3, 2015) — Thick black puddles and a looted, leaking ruin are all that remain of the Thar Jath oil treatment facility, once a crucial part of South Sudan&apos;s mainstay industry. Duration: 01:13
Video provided by AFP

Related Stories

Dec. 15, 2014 — Skin burns, passing out and eye injuries were among the primary injuries incurred at indoor tanning sites and treated in emergency departments at US hospitals, according to experts. Indoor tanning ... full story

Apr. 25, 2012 — Research on the fungus that ranks as one cause of dandruff -- the embarrassing nuisance that, by some accounts, afflicts half of humanity -- is pointing scientists toward a much-needed new treatment ... full story

Jan. 4, 2012 — Some vacuum cleaners -- those basic tools for maintaining a clean indoor environment in homes and offices -- actually contribute to indoor air pollution by releasing into the air bacteria and dust ... full story

Nov. 22, 2011 — Having survived long centuries, political upheaval and even bombings during World War II, Leonardo da Vinci's "Last Supper" masterpiece now faces the risk of damage from air pollution ... full story

ScienceDaily features breaking news and videos about the latest discoveries in health, technology, the environment, and more -- from major news services and leading universities, scientific journals, and research organizations.