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Decaying rubbish a health risk, say doctors

Berlin: German scientists are warning householders of the health dangers posed by storing organic waste, saying exposure to it, particularly to the moulds that develop as the material decays, can cause skin and breathing problems.

Harald Morr, a leading pneumologist, who is also chairman of the German Lung Foundation, said studies showed that airborne mould spores from organic waste could lead to allergic reactions, asthma attacks, hayfever-like symptoms and itchy skin lesions.

“Even just opening the lid of a bin containing organic waste can cause mould spores to be stirred up which, if breathed in, can damage the lungs,” said Dr. Morr.

These are issues more often associated with environmental pollutants such as vehicle emissions than with a recycling practice that households around the world are being encouraged to adopt. However, as more people do separate their rubbish, concerns about the way organic waste is stored are growing.

In Germany, households are now being warned to empty their organic bins regularly and to wear facemasks or hold their breath and keep a distance while dealing with the rotting material.

One of the most common health problems linked to decaying organic matter, say scientists, are aspergillomas — fungal balls that fix themselves inside the lung.

Christian Witt, a Professor at the clinic of infectology and pneumology at Charitie hospital in Berlin, said that while healthy people with a strong immune system were less at risk when breathing in fungi and bacteria from decaying matter, transplant patients, people undergoing chemotherapy and those prone to bronchial infections should avoid proximity to rubbish bins. — © Guardian Newspapers Limited, 2008

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