DNA Damage Possible From Exposure To These Toxins

(RoyalPatriot.com )- In firefighting, VOCs, heavy metals, particulate matter, and smoke residues are seldom considered how harmful they are. A burning structure produces hundreds of chemicals, gases, acids, and other hazardous substances. The federal government monitors asbestos and lead for safety reasons, ignoring a more insidious toxin.

Experts consider dioxin the most toxic chemical ever made.

This substance is one of the World Health Organization’s “Dirty Dozen” persistent organic pollutants and is more dangerous than asbestos or lead (POPs).

POPs are globally concerning because of their long-distance transport, persistence in the environment and atmosphere, bioaccumulation, and harmful effects on human health and the ecosystem. Bioaccumulation is when organisms absorb and store toxins from their environment.

Most POPs include organochlorine pesticides, industrial chemicals, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and the unintended byproducts of many industrial processes, such as chlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (CDDs) and dibenzofurans.

Burning PVC, plastics, paper, and other chlorinated materials creates dangerous chlorinated dioxins (CDDs). “Dioxin,” or 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), is the most toxic type of CDD.

Dioxins share harmful properties. Seventy-five polychlorinated dibenzodioxins (PCDDs) and numerous dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are known to be dangerous.

Burning plastics, papers, pesticides, herbicides, and other chlorine-based products produces dioxins.

The fire’s temperature determines whether dioxins adsorb to smoke particles or remain in vapor form. Adsorption happens when particles join like magnets and iron, not how sponges suck up liquids.

According to the EPA, the primary source of dioxin emissions is the “backyard” or “barrel” burning of household trash, which is helped by even trace quantities of chlorinated chemicals.

Backyard burning emits more dioxin than industrial incinerators: incomplete combustion and lower heat temperatures.

TCDD may be ingested, inhaled, or touched. Since ultra-fine smoke particle matter from fires is often smaller than 3 millimeters, dioxin-laden particulate may easily bypass the lungs and enter the bloodstream (half the size of a red blood cell).

PVC, plastics, and other synthetic materials commonly burn in building fires. “Smokeweb” is a standard description. Smoke particles are clumping together and sticking to surfaces like spider webs. Smoke cools in ceiling corners. Smoke webs from incomplete combustion may include harmful compounds like TCDD.

The scientific literature on TCDD’s harmful consequences is extensive. TCDD is the most hazardous synthetic molecule and the sixth most dangerous compound discovered by humans.