Petrol, or gasoline, as well as many other types of petroleum based fuels, carries with it an intoxicating scent. Some people find this scent undesirable, while others love it. The scent however is not the problem. The scent is attached to fumes, which over time can develop into an addiction. In fact, not a lot of time has to pass in order to the individual to become hooked to the fumes. As with cigarettes and marijuana, the substance enters in through the lungs, which then enters the bloodstream and creates the “high” with which many people are familiar.
Petrol is not the only substance which can have this affect. Formaldehyde, jet fuel, and many other chemical substances produce fumes which should not be breathed in by an individual for more than twenty or thirty minutes at a time, at least not without plenty of ventilation, such as the case of an outdoor area. Airports have plenty of ventilation due to the workers being outside, and fuel fumes of any kind in any type of vehicle are only dangerous when the individual is around them all the time, especially in an area where there is not enough ventilation.
Addictions occur through the lungs in various substances, but it is the case of fumes gathering in the basement of a nearby home or some similar situation which breeds toxic breathing, as well as being a heavy fire hazard. Fumes such as these carry carcinogenic (cancer causing), as well as fire creating hazards, and should therefore be handled and dealt with according to safety and fire regulations.
While your reliance on breathed in substances can affect you faster if you are doing it on purpose, many petrol fume addictions occur over a period of time, when the person is exposed repeated to the fumes and becomes addicted after their bodies become tolerant to the substances in their lungs.
For more information regarding drug and alcohol testing, call Mediscreen today: (+61) 1300 79 70 40.
