Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Brown Health
Brown Health
• Damaging or harmful
• In the early sixteenth century,
Paracelsus pointed out: “All
substances are poisons; there is
none which is not a poison. The right
dose differentiates a poison and a
remedy.”
Toxicology vs. Toxicity
• Toxicology
– Study of toxins and poisons
– Includes how toxins and poisons will
interact in living organisms
• Based on epidemiological studies
• Based on animal studies
Toxicity
Dose LD50
Toxic Dose is based upon normal
distribution and average health.
• Effective Dose
– Amount of a toxin at which there is a
response
– Referred to as threshold or odor threshold
• Threshold
– The concentration at which toxic effects
are first detected
Individual Response
• ppm or ppb
– used with liquid, vapor, and gas
• mg/m3
– used with solid particulates suspended in
air
Exposure Limits
• Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL)
• Threshold Limit Value (TLV)
• Recommended Exposure Limit (REL)
• Time-weighted Average (TWA)
• Short-term Exposure Limit (STEL)
• Ceiling (C)
• Immediately Dangerous to Life Or Health
(IDLH)
Exposure Limits
• Permissible Exposure Limits (PEL)
– Legally enforceable standard established by
OSHA
• Threshold Limit Values (TLV)
– Guidelines established by American Conference of
Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH)
• Recommended Exposure Limit (REL)
– NIOSH workplace exposure concentration; 10
hour average
Exposure Limits
• Inhalation
• Absorption
• Ingestion
• Injection
Route of Toxins in the Body
• Inhalation
– Most common toxic dose in the
occupational environment
Route of Toxins in the Body
• Absorption
– Most common route of entry for the worker
Route of Toxins in the Body
• Ingestion
– Most common route in the home
Route of Toxins in the Body
• Injection
– Occurs through puncture, tearing or
shooting of materials through the skin by
high pressure
Exposure and Effects
• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Nausea
• Eye, skin or respiratory damage
• Unconsciousness
• Death
Chronic Exposure
• Affected by poisons:
– CNS
– Circulatory system
– Blood and blood forming systems
– Visceral organs (liver, kidneys, lungs,
etc.)
– Skin
Local and Systemic Toxicity
• Additive 2 + 2 = 4
• Synergistic 2 + 2 = 6
• Potentiation 0 + 2 = 10
• Antagonism 4 + 6 = 8
Response Factors
• Substance
• Exposure
• Worker Characteristics
• Environment
Response Factors
• Substance
– Chemical composition, physical
characteristics, stability, storage, and
solubility in body fluids
• Exposure
– Dose (Concentration over time) and route
of entry
Response Factors
• Worker Characteristics
– Level of toxicity, age and body weight,
nutrition, health and stress
• Environment
– Physical factors, social factors and other
chemicals
Toxic Effects of Chemical
Substances
• Asphyxiants
• Anesthetics
• Irritants
• Corrosives
• Sensitizers
• Carcinogens
• Reproductive Toxins
Chemical Substances
• Asphyxiant
– Chemicals that deprive the victim’s body tissues of
oxygen
– Simple- Displace oxygen in the air
– Chemical- Competes with oxygen by interfering with
absorption and use of oxygen in the body
• Anesthetics
– Material that causes a loss of sensation or produces
unconsciousness
– Cause central nervous system depression
Chemical Substances
• Irritants
– Chemical, liquid, or solid that causes a
reversible inflammatory effect on living
tissue at site of contact
• Corrosive
– Chemical that causes irreversible damage
to living tissue
Chemical Substances
• Sensitizer
– Chemical that causes a substantial number of
exposed people or animals to develop an
allergic reaction in normal tissue after
repeated exposure to the chemical
• Carcinogen
– A carcinogen is any substance that has
proved or is suspected to increase the risk of
cancer in workers
Reproductive Toxins
• Mutagens
– Agents that cause an inheritable change in the
chemical structure of chromosomes in the cell
– Changes in the structure of sex cells may be
passed on to future generations
• Teratogens
– Substances that produce malformations of an
unborn child without killing the child or causing
physical harm to the mother
Reducing Your Exposure
• Know the identity of the chemical
and the concentration of that
chemical
• Use the MSDS
• Minimize your time working with
the material
• Wear the recommended PPE
• Use appropriate personal
hygiene