Highlights |
What is 1,1,1-trichloroethane? |
What happens to 1,1,1-trichloroethane when
it enters the environment? |
How might I be exposed to 1,1,1-trichloroethane? |
How can 1,1,1-trichloroethane affect my health? |
How likely is 1,1,1-trichloroethane to cause
cancer? |
How can 1,1,1-trichloroethane affect children? |
How can families reduce the risk of exposure
to 1,1,1-trichloroethane? |
Is there a medical test to show whether I've
been exposed to 1,1,1-trichloroethane? |
Has the federal government made recommendations
to protect human health? |
References |
Contact Information |
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September 2004 |
ToxFAQs™ |
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1,1,1-Trichloroethane |
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This fact sheet answers the most frequently
asked health questions about 1,1,1-trichloroethane. For more
information, you may call the ATSDR Information Center at
1-888-422-8737. This fact sheet is one in a series of summaries
about hazardous substances and their health effects. This
information is important because this substance may harm you.
The effects of exposure to any hazardous substance depend
on the dose, the duration, how you are exposed, personal traits
and habits, and whether other chemicals are present.
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HIGHLIGHTS: Exposure to 1,1,1-trichloroethane
usually occurs by breathing contaminated air. It is found
in building materials, cleaning products, paints, and
metal degreasing agents. You are not likely to be exposed
to large enough amounts to cause adverse health effects.
Inhaling high levels of 1,1,1-trichloroethane can cause
you to become dizzy and lightheaded. Exposure to much
higher levels can cause unconsciousness and other effects.
This substance has been found in at least 809 of the 1,647
National Priorities List sites identified by the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA). |
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What
is 1,1,1-trichloroethane? |
1,1,1 Trichloroethane is a synthetic
chemical that does not occur naturally in the environment.
It also is known as methylchloroform, methyltrichloromethane,
trichloromethylmethane, and α-trichloromethane. Its registered
trade names are chloroethene NU® and Aerothene TT®.
No 1,1,1 trichloroethane is supposed
to be manufactured for domestic use in the United States after
January 1, 2002 because it affects the ozone layer. 1,1,1-Trichloroethane
had many industrial and household uses, including use as a
solvent to dissolve other substances, such as glues and paints;
to remove oil or grease from manufactured metal parts; and
as an ingredient of household products such as spot cleaners,
glues, and aerosol sprays.
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What
happens to 1,1,1-trichloroethane when it enters the environment? |
- Most of the 1,1,1-trichloroethane released into the environment
enters the air, where it lasts for about 6 years.
- Once in the air, it can travel to the ozone layer, there
sunlight can break it down into chemicals that may reduce
the ozone layer
- Contaminated water from landfills and hazardous waste
sites can contaminate surrounding soil and nearby surface
water or groundwater.
- From lakes and rivers, most of the 1,1,1-trichloroethane
evaporates quickly into the air.
- Water can carry 1,1,1-trichloroethane through the soil
and into the groundwater where it can evaporate and pass
through the soil as a gas, then be released to the air.
- Organisms living in soil or water may also break down
1,1,1-trichloroethane.
- It will not build up in plants or animals.
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How
might I be exposed to 1,1,1-trichloroethane? |
- Breathing 1,1,1-trichloroethane in contaminated outdoor
and indoor air. Because 1,1,1 trichloroethane was used so
frequently in home and office products, you are likely to
be exposed to higher levels indoors than outdoors or near
hazardous waste sites. However, since 2002, 1,1,1-trichloroethane
is not expected to be commonly used, and therefore, the
likelihood of being exposed to it is remote.
- In the workplace, you could have been exposed to 1,1,1-trichloroethane
while using some metal degreasing agents, paints, glues,
and cleaning products.
- Ingesting contaminated drinking water and food.
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How
can 1,1,1-trichloroethane affect my health? |
If you breathe air containing high levels
of 1,1,1-trichloroethane for a short time, you may become
dizzy and lightheaded and possibly lose your coordination.
These effects rapidly disappear after you stop breathing contaminated
air. If you breathe in much higher levels, you may become
unconscious, your blood pressure may decrease, and your heart
may stop beating. Whether breathing low levels of 1,1,1-trichloroethane
for a long time causes harmful effects is not known. Studies
in animals show that breathing air that contains very high
levels of 1,1,1-trichloroethane damages the breathing passages
and causes mild effects in the liver, in addition to affecting
the nervous system.
There are no studies in humans that determine
whether eating food or drinking water contaminated with 1,1,1-trichloroethane
could harm health. Placing large amounts of 1,1,1-trichloroethane
in the stomachs of animals has caused effects on the nervous
system, mild liver damage, unconsciousness, and even death.
If your skin contacts 1,1,1-trichloroethane,
you might feel some irritation. Studies in animals suggest
that repeated exposure of the skin might affect the liver
and that very large amounts may cause death. These effects
occurred only when evaporation was prevented.
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How
likely is 1,1,1-trichloroethane to cause cancer? |
Available information does not indicate
that 1,1,1-trichloroethane causes cancer. The International
Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and the EPA have determined
that 1,1,1-trichloroethane is not classifiable as to its carcinogenicity
in humans.
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How
can 1,1,1-trichloroethane affect children? |
Children exposed to large amounts of
1,1,1-trichloroethane probably would be affected in the same
manner as adults. In animals, it has been shown that 1,1,1-trichloroethane
can pass from the mother's blood into a fetus. When pregnant
mice were exposed to high levels of 1,1,1-trichloroethane
in air, their babies developed more slowly than normal and
had some behavioral problems. However, whether similar effects
occur in humans has not been demonstrated.
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How
can families reduce the risk of exposure to 1,1,1-trichloroethane? |
Children can be exposed to 1,1,1-trichloroethane
in household products, such as adhesives and cleaners. Parents
should store household chemicals out of reach of young children
to prevent accidental poisonings or skin irritation. Always
store household chemicals in their original labeled containers.
Never store household chemicals in containers that children
would find attractive to eat or drink from, such as old soda
bottles. Keep your Poison Control Center's number near the
phone.
Sometimes older children sniff household
chemicals in an attempt to get high. Your children may be
exposed to 1,1,1-trichloroethane by inhaling products containing
it. Talk with your children about the dangers of sniffing
chemicals.
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Is
there a medical test to show whether I've been exposed to 1,1,1-trichloroethane? |
Samples of your breath, blood, and urine
can be tested to determine if you have recently been exposed
to 1,1,1-trichloroethane. In some cases, these tests can estimate
how much 1,1,1-trichloroethane has entered your body. To be
of any value, samples of your breath or blood have to be taken
within hours after exposure, and samples of urine have to
be taken within 2 days after exposure. However, these tests
will not tell you whether your health will be affected by
exposure to 1,1,1-trichloroethane. The exposure tests are
not routinely available in hospitals and clinics because they
require special analytical equipment.
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Has
the federal government made recommendations to protect human
health? |
EPA regulates the levels of 1,1,1-trichloroethane
that are allowable in drinking water. The highest level of
1,1,1-trichloroethane allowed in drinking water is 0.2 parts
1,1,1,-trichloroethane per 1 million parts of water (0.2 ppm).
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(OSHA) has set a limit of 350 parts 1,1,1-trichloroethane
per 1 million parts of air (350 ppm) in the workplace.
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References |
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease
Registry (ATSDR). 1996. Managing Hazardous Materials Incidents.
Volume III Medical Management Guidelines for Acute
Chemical Exposures: 1,1,1-Trichloroethane.
Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
Public Health Service.
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease
Registry (ATSDR). 2004. Toxicological
Profile for 1,1,1-trichloroethane. (Draft for Public
Comment). Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, Public Health Service.
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Where can I get
more information? |
ATSDR can tell you where to find occupational
and environmental health clinics. Their specialists can recognize,
evaluate, and treat illnesses resulting from exposure to hazardous
substances. You can also contact your community or state health
or environmental quality department if you have any more questions
or concerns.
For more information, contact:
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Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
Division of Toxicology
1600 Clifton Road NE, Mailstop F-32
Atlanta, GA 30333
Phone: 1-888-42-ATSDR (1-888-422-8737)
FAX: (770)-488-4178
Email: ATSDRIC@cdc.gov
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