Office Laser Printers as harmful to Lungs as Cigarette Smoking is

The ubiquitous laser printer used at your office or even in your home could in fact be a silent killer. A new study conducted by Australian scientists claims that certain laser printers pose as a health risk because of the tiny particles of toner-like material that are released into the air.

The Australian scientists from the Queensland University of Technology have also said that such office laser printers could damage the lungs in pretty much the same way that smoke particles from cigarettes do.

For the study, the researchers studied a range of printer models and found that around a third of them emit potentially dangerous levels of toner particles into the air. Such miniscule particles may cause health problems, ranging from respiratory irritation to more severe illnesses like cardiovascular problems or even cancer.

The report also stated that one of the printers released particles into an experimental chamber at a rate comparable to the particle emissions from cigarette smoking.

During the study, Lidia Morawska, Ph.D and her colleagues in Australia classified 17 out of 62 printers as “high particle emitters” because they released such elevated quantities of particles.

Along with this rather bad news, here is some seemingly good news. 37 out of the 62 printers released no particles that diminished air quality, while six of them released only low levels, and 2 medium levels.

Interestingly, the study included commonly used printers such as those from Canon, HP Color Laserjet, Ricoh and Toshiba. The study was conducted in an open office, so as to reproduce “a real life” environment.

According to Morawska, indoor particle levels in the office air increased five-fold during working hours due to excessive printer use.

The study also found that printers emitted more particles when operating with new toner cartridges, and when printing graphics and images that require greater quantities of toner.

However, the study has not offered any definitive proof, and has concluded that more research of printers on the health effects is needed.

“By all means, this is an important indoor source of pollution. There should be regulations,” Morawska concluded.


source:techshout.com