What Are the Hazards of Inhaling Paint Fumes?

When decorating a house, people often use paint, which can lead to a distinctive paint smell in the room. If one moves in shortly after painting, the body can inhale a large amount of the paint fumes. Due to individual differences in physical conditions, some people may experience symptoms such as headache, dizziness, cough, fatigue, chest tightness, and shortness of breath after inhaling paint fumes, while others may develop asthma, coughing, and fetal developmental malformations.

1. Moving into a newly decorated house and inhaling paint fumes can often lead to symptoms such as headache, dizziness, chest tightness, and cough. Long-term exposure can even lead to serious illnesses such as aplastic anemia, leukemia, tuberculosis, pleurisy, and even cancer. Pregnant women should be especially cautious, as long-term exposure to high-risk paint fumes can cause skin allergies and, in severe cases, fetal malformations such as cleft lip and palate.

2. Inhaling paint fumes can also lead to airway hyperreactivity, which may trigger asthma symptoms such as coughing, sputum production, and wheezing. If patients develop these clinical manifestations after inhaling paint fumes, they can use drugs such as salbutamol and ipratropium bromide to quickly relieve asthma. Oral administration of leukotriene modulators, such as montelukast, and inhaled corticosteroids, such as Symbicort or Seretide, can also be considered. If the patient has a history of bronchial asthma, it is recommended to avoid exposure to odors to prevent recurrence of the disease.