Replies

1. 
   PlaneWood | Aug 07, 2005 06:03am | #1

   Gary -

   Everyone can be allergic to anything on any given day!

   But, start here:  http://bodd.cf.ac.uk/index.html  the Botanical Dermatology Database

   Most of the exotic woods will be listed here.

   I am allergic to Machaerium scleroxylon  aka(Bolivian Rosewood, Caviuna, Jacaranda pardo, Pau Ferro).  Does a number on me just like poison ivy.  I have to use latex gloves, blocker cream, dust mask, and have every tool connected to a large dust collector.  And to a slight extent, Cocobolo.  Braziliam Rosewood does not seem to affect me.  I have never worked with Rosewoods from Indonesia or India.

   BUT, you have to be careful cause many of the exotic woods are considered to be synthizers (spelling sucks).  The more you are exposed, the closer the day when you will have a reaction.  My first reaction to Bolivian Rosewood was 2 months after I started working with it, and man was it a doozie!  Took a month to get over it.  But, like most things, you can learn how to work with it.  Some of the native woods are not good either (Black Walnut dust, for instance)

   My general rule is - If you can smell it, then the toxins are in the air and something need to be done.

   ps - I basically dress up in a space suit and wear a respirator when emptying the dust collector bag.

   PlaneWood by Mike_in_Katy (maker of fine sawdust!)
   PlaneWood

2. 
   hammer1 | Aug 07, 2005 06:29am | #2

   All wood dust is considered carcinogenic. All wood dust can cause skin, eye, respiratory inflammation or irritation. It may cause dermatitis, asthma and lung fibrosis. Some people are more sensitive to certain species than others. Tropical woods that contain silica may be more prone to causing respiratory problems but it depends on the individual and the amount of exposure. Rosewood can be a name used for 30 different species, characteristics may vary from tree to tree. I don't think anyone can say that a cancer was caused by wood dust with absolute certainty, but a person that just milled cedar and broke out in a rash is pretty sure what caused it. Here is a link with some information. It was compiled by a woodworker that almost died from a severe respiratory reaction. For some people, under certain circumstances, exposure can be a serious health issue.

   http://www.mimf.com/archives/toxic.htm

   Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
3. 
   mikegagne | Aug 07, 2005 07:40am | #3

   Gary, your body decides for you. Anyone can become sensitized to any species given the right amount of contact and white blood cell activation against that contact. Dust masks, air flow, barrier creams for some species become necessary AFTER you get sensitized. The best advice is to avoid getting there in the first place. My personal bugboos are to teak, tennesee red cedar, mango (relative of poison ivy), and Australian lacewood with a few milder ones in between. I have worked all these over the last 33 years and have largely been able to minimize their effects by being careful and protecting my self. That said, keep your shop clean and watch out for those moldy woods and wood dusts. That beautiful spalted stuff that we all love the looks of can give you a very bad brain infection with attendant headaches as your body does not know what to do with wood mold and once inhaled it goes right into your blood stream

4. 
   Telemike | Aug 07, 2005 08:22am | #4

   All wood dust is classified as an "IARC known human carcinogen". IARC is an offical scientific (government?) body of scientists. "Known human carcinogens" is a very exclusive club - you can count them on your hands and have a few fingers left over!

   I personally think that the carcinogenicity may be due to wood dust trapped in your sinuses rotting with fungus or bacteria and the fungal or bacterial toxins or metabolic products - science isn't to a point where carcinogenisis is really well and generally understood.

   The bottom line: Use a dust collector and a dust mask and avoid inhaling wood dust. My dust collector is outside the shop in an added on exterior closet with the air compressor so I don't have to worry about the fine dust that gets through the bag filters.

   Allergy is another issue. As a previous poster stated, allergy is idiosyncratic - everyone reacts in their own way. Some people can have an aggravating skin reaction, others may have a life threatening systematic reaction. But, some woods are more allergenic than others like black walnut, rosewood, etc. The link in one of the posts above has info about which woods are the most potent sensitizers. Once you're sensitized to some thing and have an allergic reaction to it, you just have to find something else to use.

   I've had an allergic reaction to something. Could be black walnut, could be termite frass in the walnut, could be a tick bite. Now I have an epinephrine auto-injector just in case since I started strangling last time.

   Pay attention to what you've been exposed to when you have a reaction and make sure that you're not alone in the shop next time you use it. Once you're sensitized, you're sensitized for good and an acute reaction can kill by anaphylaxis. Pardon my spelling.