Have you been poisoned?have you ever been in contct with organic solvents Trichloroethylene /Trichloroethane?

Question

These two solvents cause many hazards to health Eg.eyes nose and mouth ,liver ,lungs and brain damage .they break down to Vinyl chloride which has been found to be a .carcinogenic
They are or were used in dry cleaning ,as metal degreasers in the steel industry and as as anaseatics in the hospitals .Trying to rid the groundwaters and soil of them after they have been dumped by industries is a huge problem for the government .it can take many years
for the damage to your body to come to light as they get into the bloodstream and very slowly start to do their damage .

Answer 1

Yep. They used to be common cleaning solvents in aircraft maintenance and repair.
I routinely used them as a 19-20 year old mechanic.
So far so good. No ill effects touch wood.
As far as I know, they are banned in most countries now.

Answer 2

1-1-1 Trichloroethane was banned under the Montreal treaty due to its effect on ozone depletion. It is one of the least toxic of the chlorinated hydrocarbons, and it is not retained in the body for any significant time, so does not have long term effects as you describe.

Trichloroethylene is possibly carcinogenic (but the evidence is inconclusive) but certainly toxic. It is little used these days because there are other products which are safer.

Answer 3

I'm an environmental consultant any info you need: [e-mail]. VOCs like the chemicals above have a rough 70 year half life in soil.

Answer 4

Cheers for reminding me. I used to be a research chemist and handled all sorts of solvents, most of them carcinogenic.
Maybe THAT'S what's wrong with me...