Aerosol

• LETHBRIDGE, Alberta, Sept. 21, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- This fall, farmers in British Columbia on Vancouver Island and in the Fraser Valley can safely dispose of unwanted agricultural pesticides and old, obsolete livestock and equine medications through a Cleanfarms program.
• Cleanfarms is operating the collection events at three municipal depots on Vancouver Island and four ag retailer locations in the Fraser Valley.
• Since the program began, more than 4,200 tonnes of unwanted pesticides and 67.3 tonnes of obsolete farm animal (cattle, horses, goats, poultry) health medications have been collected across Canada.
• Next fall (2024), events will return to the Okanagan, Interior and Kootenay regions and then come back to Vancouver Island and the Fraser Valley in 2026.

• Pet ownership is at an all-time high, with a recent survey finding 69% of Australian households have at least one pet.
• We spend an estimated A$33 billion every year on caring for our fur babies.
• But some, such as pregnant people and those with weakened immune systems, are at greater risk of getting sick from animals.

What diseases can pets carry?

• Infectious diseases that move from animals to humans are called zoonotic diseases or zoonoses.
• Zoonoses can be transmitted directly from pets to humans, such as through contact with saliva, bodily fluids and faeces, or indirectly, such as through contact with contaminated bedding, soil, food or water.
• Both dogs and cats are also reservoirs for methicillin-resistant bacterium Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), with close contact with pets identified as an important risk factor for zoonotic transmission.
• Read more:
  Cats carry diseases that can be deadly to humans, and it's costing Australia $6 billion every year

Birds, turtles and fish can also transmit disease

• Pet birds can occasionally transmit psittacosis, a bacterial infection which causes pneumonia.
• Contact with pet turtles has been linked to Salmonella infections in humans, particularly in young children.
• Even pet fish have been linked to a range of bacterial infections in humans, including vibriosis, mycobacteriosis and salmonellosis.
• Close contact with animals – and some behaviours in particular – increase the risk of zoonotic transmission.

What should I do if I’m worried about catching a disease from my pet?

There are a number of good hygiene and pet husbandry practices that can reduce your risk of becoming sick. These include:
It is especially important for those who are at a higher risk of illness to take precautions to reduce their exposure to zoonotic pathogens. And if you’re thinking about getting a pet, ask your vet which type of animal would best suit your personal circumstances.

Read more:
One in three people are infected with _Toxoplasma_ parasite – and the clue could be in our eyes

• If you asked me what’s in e-cigarettes, disposable vapes or e-liquids, my short answer would be “we don’t fully know”.
• E-cigarettes’ risk to health varies depending on many factors including which device or flavours are used, and how people use them.
• So vapers just don’t know what they’re inhaling and cannot be certain of the health impacts.

What do we know?

• Ingredients include nicotine, flavouring chemicals, and the liquids that carry them – primarily propylene glycol and glycerine.
• Concerningly, we also find volatile organic compounds, particulate matter and carcinogens (agents that can cause cancer), many of which we know are harmful.
• Our previous research also found 2-chlorophenol in about half of e-liquids users buy to top-up re-fillable e-cigarettes.

How about polonium?

• That’s because tobacco plants absorb it and other radioactive materials from the soil, air and high-phosphate fertiliser.
• Although it is feasible if the glycerine in e-liquids comes from plants and similar fertilisers are used to grow them.

It’s not just the ingredients

• Aside from their ingredients, the materials e-cigarette devices are made from can end up in our bodies.
• Toxic metals and related substances such as arsenic, lead, chromium and nickel can be detected in both e-liquids and vapers’ urine, saliva and blood.

That’s not all

The process of heating e-liquids to create an inhalable aerosol also changes their chemical make-up to produce degradation products. These include:
• However due to different devices and how the samples are collected, the levels measured vary widely between studies.
• Often, the levels are very low, leading to proponents of vaping arguing e-cigarettes are far safer than tobacco smoking.
• People who buy tobacco cigarettes are also confronted with a plethora of warnings about the hazards of smoking, while vapers generally are not.

How about labelling?

• Even if labels are present, they don’t always reflect what’s in the product.
• Nicotine concentration of e-liquids is often quite different to what is on the label, and “nicotine-free” e-liquids often contain nicotine.
• However mixing them into e-liquids, heating and inhaling them is a very different type of exposure, compared to eating them.
• The list is so short because we don’t have enough information on the health effects if inhaled of other flavouring chemicals, and their interactions with other e-liquid ingredients.

Where to next?

For us to better assess the health risks of vapes, we need to learn more about:
Finally, we need to know more about how people use e-cigarettes so we can better understand and quantify the health risks in the real world.

• The "Global Aerosol Propellants Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report, 2023 - 2030" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.
• The global aerosol propellants market size is expected to reach USD 15.54 billion by 2030 and is expected to expand at 6.4% CAGR from 2023 to 2030.
• The growth is majorly driven by the rising utilization of deodorants, hair sprays, hair mousse, dry shampoos, insecticides, air fresheners, and cleaning products.
• Through these operational integrations, manufacturers are trying to reach out to potential customers of aerosol propellants.