Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Citizens for a Fragrance Free America ;)

It's becoming a new trend for fragrances to be banned in the workplace. I love this because while I generally enjoy a lot of scents, I rarely come across one that doesn't congest my sinuses and give me a headache after five minutes or so. My favorite example was the Flonase I was prescribed as a teenager. It was scented. Who's genius idea was it to put fragrance in something being shot directly up people's nasal cavities?? I can't stand when it smells like someone took a bath in something rather than delicately placing a scent. Why do some people want you to smell them for half an hour after they've left the room? I think that you should have to be hugging someone to smell him or her. I personally use unscented everything and rarely apply my favorite perfumes because I'm just too sensitive. I've had to abandon my favorite elliptical at the gym because there are only two of the model, right next to one another, and there's a lady that gets there before me and is there still 45min later when I'm leaving and she smells really strongly of a soap. It's a nice smell but overwhelming and headache causing.
I was forwarded an interesting brochure at work that Mendocino County is distributing about fragrance in the workplace and learned some new things. While the FDA regulates most ingredients in things that are scented like perfume and make-up, fragrances are exempt because they're "trade secrets," so who knows what chemicals are vaporizing into the air and intoxicating us!
They also touched on another pet peeve of mine, the use of air "fresheners:"
"Clean indoor air should not smell of anything. If it has a chronic stale, musty or strange smell, it could indicate a problem that should be addressed, not covered up, in your workplace."
I especially hate their use in restrooms. They don't cover up the smell of urine and poo; it just now smells like ass and potpourri. Wonderful.

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