-Caveat Lector-
Candles: a burning controversy
Ban on certain types proposed as links to toxic emissions
emerge
The growth in sales of candles, some say, is presenting new
problems in an industry that has been operating without
mandatory standards.
By Francesca Lyman
SPECIAL TO MSNBC
Jan. 31 - Candles bring warmth and fragrance into a room,
create a shimmering, romantic ambiance and soothe frayed
nerves. But some can also carry dangerous toxins and soot
into your home. And now, the government has even proposed a
ban on certain types of candles.
IT'S HARD not to succumb to a call to "Awaken and
lift your spirit" or "Bathe your senses in pure joy." So,
with other guests at a candle party, I took a turn inhaling
the lavender, pine and ocean mist fragrances of dozens of
tea lights and votives, pillar candles and tapers - all
infused, the show presenter boasted, with "essential oils."
What could be more magical than candles? They're
associated with birthdays, incantations, secret wishes and
prayer. While inspecting rows of candelabras, at this decade
's version of a Tupperware party, we chatted about favorite
scents, exchanged notes on home design and got lessons in
pre-19th century technologies like snuffing and
wick-trimming.
But no one ever mentioned the controversies over
burning candles that have flickered in the news throughout
the last year: That candles with lead wicks can give off
toxic emissions. One study, by researchers at the University
of Michigan, found that such candles give off emissions that
exceed Environmental Protection Agency-standards for outdoor
air.
Another study, conducted by Public Citizen and
published last year in the Journal of the American Medical
Association, found that smoke from the candles contained
alarming levels of lead, prompting the Washington,
D.C.-based consumer group to petition for a ban on wicks
containing the metal and a recall of all metal-wicked
candles.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission, which began
testing candles several months ago, found even greater
evidence of harm: Forty percent of candles on the market use
metal wicks, and of these, up to 10 percent pose high lead
emissions.
Some of these candles release five times the amount
of lead considered hazardous for children younger than 6,
CPSC found. Exposure to high amounts of lead, which can
cause brain and central nervous system damage, is especially
harmful to children.
As a result of the accumulating evidence, the
government agency this week proposed banning lead candle
wicks, although it did not address the issue of a recall.
The commission may vote on the ban, which would apply to
both U.S. candles and imports, as early as next week.
"People believe in so-called aromatherapy," the
homeopathic practice based on scent, Dr. Jerome Nriagu,
author of the University of Michigan study, told MSNBC.com.
And, they "sit and breathe the stuff, when they could be
poisoning themselves and their families."
Safety tips
To cut down on candle smoke:
. Don't burn candles with a shiny metal core in the wick
unless you know it's lead-free.
. Keep wick trimmed to � inch height.
. Keep candles away from drafts, which cause sooting.
. Buy candles from reputable companies.
. Know what's in the wax you're burning.
. Be aware of candles that have been recalled by the CPSC.
Candles have been used for hundreds of years without
problems, said Marianne McDermott, a representative of the
National Candle Association, a trade group that represents
95 percent of U.S. candle manufacturers. But the explosion
of interest in aromatherapy products and scented candles,
say critics, is presenting new problems in an industry that
has been operating without mandatory standards.
In 1974, American candle makers agreed to voluntarily
stop using lead wicks, after the CPSC was first petitioned
to ban them. Recently though, Jane Francis of CPSC said,
"lead has been creeping back into candles." The reason, some
speculate, is that wax has gotten softer as candle makers
began adding more fragrances and additives, necessitating
metal wicks that can stand firmly above the pool of wax.
Others point to imported candles as the culprit.
Meanwhile, sales have exploded, from under $1 billion
annually in the early 1990s to an estimated $3.2 billion in
the most recent year for which statistics are available.
The American candle industry endorses a mandatory ban
on lead wicks, according to McDermott. While acknowledging
that the popularity of aromatherapy has fanned the growth of
candles, she added, "Nobody in the candle business should be
using the word aromatherapy, because it has nothing to do
with candles. I don't even know if candles could be made
with essential oils."
THE DARK SIDE OF BURNING CANDLES
Besides emitting lead, candles are also a source of
soot, particulates and other, as-yet unidentified
substances. "Candles are a growing cause of property damage,
because they can produce vast amounts of soot, especially
some brands with poor wicking and low quality wax," said Ron
Bailey of Bailey Engineering Corp. in Palm Beach Gardens,
Fla., who consults on heating and ventilation systems.
Bailey said that insurance companies have been
paying thousands of dollars on soot damage claims during the
last few years, "but now that they're being traced to
candles, they don't want to pay."
Cathy Flanders, a homemaker from Plano, Texas, said
she wishes she had known about "the dark side of burning
candles" before she bought a batch of scented candles in
1997. These candles, she claimed, poisoned her entire
family.
While she only burned several candles at a time,
Flanders said that within six months she began seeing soot
damage in her home. But it wasn't until Bailey Engineering
analyzed the soot caking her walls, carpets, vents and
ductwork that the family could be sure of the source.
Another lab traced high lead emissions to the candles' metal
wicks.
About the same time, her son Andrew, then 11 years
old, started inexplicably failing in school and was
diagnosed with learning disorders. Blood tests revealed that
he had elevated lead levels. "It's really, really sad," said
Flanders. "The bottom line with lead is that it robs
children of what they might have been."
Flanders said she blames the CPSC for not regulating
the industry better. "They've sold millions of these
candles - to people who think they are enhancing their
environment when they may be actually destroying their
health and air quality," she said.
As for her home, Flanders said that the lead has so
infiltrated the structure of her house that "we could never
sell our home now if we wanted to."
According to the candle association's McDermott, part
of the problem is that "people don't know how to use candles
like they used to." Whereas our forefathers were skilled in
controlling the dangers of using an open flame indoors, we'
ve lost that social history, she said.
MORE LAWS IN MIDDLE AGES
David Urban, a combustion engineer with NASA,
agreed. In fact, he noted, there were more standards
governing candles back in the Middle Ages than there are
today, quoting a reference to a English law of 1381 that
required chandlers (makers and sellers of candles) to assure
the quality of their waxes and "wykes." The penalties for a
chandler dispensing bad wax in 14th century England were
many, including, having the bad candle "burnt before his
doore," being put in a pillory, or finally, exile.
Today, given the lack of standards governing candles'
materials, he said, "People should pay careful attention to
what's in the candles they buy."
That might be easier said than done. The kinds of
fine-particle soot that come out of candles are the same
that come out of a diesel truck, said Urban. But makers of
beeswax candles say they're more clean-burning, while NCA's
McDermott said petroleum-based paraffin candles are just as
good. And according to indoor air expert Thad Godish of Ball
State University, tests show that candles can also produce a
variety of harmful substances other than lead, albeit in low
amounts, including acetone, benzene and mercury, as well as
byproducts of fragrances, which can cause respiratory, skin
and eye irritations.
The bottom line: Since candle makers aren't required
to show ingredients on labels, and fragrance suppliers are
protected under "trade secret" provisions, it's difficult
for consumers to know what they're buying.
PROTECTING YOURSELF
Consumers need better protection, said advocate Peter
Lurie, a physician at the Public Citizen's Health Research
Group. "Consumers shouldn't have to check their products,"
he said. "Industry should be setting standards and testing
their products, and the government should be insuring their
safety." But even if the CSPC ban is approved, it
wouldn't go into effect until the end of the year. In the
meantime, err on the side of caution, advised CSPC, and
avoid all candles with metal wicks. Since it's sometimes
partially buried in the core, you may need to scratch back
the wax around the wick's entry point to feel if there is
metal below.
And the Public Citizen urged going further, calling
on consumers not only to boycott metal-wick candles, but
also to return any in their homes to the stores where they
were purchased. Said the group's director, Dr. Sidney M.
Wolfe, "Lead in candles is a completely unnecessary and
avoidable source of lead poisoning."
Francesca Lyman is an environmental and travel
journalist and editor of the American Museum of Natural
History book, "Inside the Dzanga-Sangha Rain Forest"
(Workman, 1998).
Citizen
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