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Pollutants from Household Products and Building Materials

Household items such as furniture, cabinets, building materials, paint, wallpapers, cleaning products, glues and some cosmetics can emit gases into your indoor air.

This is known as "off-gassing."

Deteriorating building materials can emit dust into the indoor air, and this dust may be toxic if the source material is also toxic. Insulating materials containing asbestos, or paint containing lead, can release dust particles into the air and expose people to these substances.

In this section, you can learn more about the sources, health effects and specific remedies for fixing problems associated with pollutants emitted from household products and building materials.

You can also visit our page on Tips for Healthy Indoor Air for general information on how to reduce your risk of exposure to pollutants in your indoor environments.