Toxic warning issued to millions of Americans driving in hot weather this summer - how to tell if YOU are at risk READ MORE: 99% of cars sold in US contain cancer-causing chemical By Cassidy Morrison Senior Health Reporter For Dailymail.Com Published: 17:35 BST, 25 July 2024 | Updated: 17:35 BST, 25 July 2024 e-mail View comments The inside of your car could be sending a flurry of toxic compounds into your lungs on hot days, new research shows. Formaldehyde and other toxic chemicals used to make up some of our favorite features in a new car, from plush seats to soft leather linings include formaldehyde , a chemical linked to cancer , and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
When cars heat up to about 70 to 110 degrees, those chemicals turn into a toxic gas that enters the body through the nostrils. From there, they cause irritation in mucous membranes, headache, nausea, and dizziness. Breathing in volatile organic compounds causes headache, nausea, and dizziness in the short term.
Longer term, it raises risks of cancer, cognitive problems, and organ damage The graph shows the most influential factors in a car that increase the emissions of volatile organic compounds like formaldehyde Long-term exposure to formaldehyde and related acetaldehyde and hexaldehyde has been linked to kidney damage, memory loss, cognitive problems, cancers, particularly blood cancers, and heart diseases. Ventilation can drastically reduce these risks, and researchers recommend against sitting in .