Natural organic fibers--health effects

Our plain-English summary of Natural organic fibers--health effects, by B. Järvholm (International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, 2000).

The study

• Author: B. Järvholm
• Journal: International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health
• Published: 2000;73 Suppl:S69-74
• Type of article: Review
• Cited by: 13 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

Objectives: Natural organic fibers are used in large quantities in the production of paper products and textiles. They are also constituents of food and added to food to promote health. The objective of this review is to evaluate the health effects of natural organic fibers. The health effects of dietary fibers are excluded from the review.

Methods: This is a literature review.

Results: Exposure to these fibers in industry is usually not characterized as fibers but as dust. Rather dusty conditions have been reported in both paper and textile industries with concentrations up to and above 30 mg/m3. Both in the paper and textile industry inorganic fibers may occur making it hard to evaluate health effects of natural organic fibers from studies of workers in the paper and textile industry. There seems to be no increased risk of mesothelioma, lung cancer or lung fibrosis in workers exposed to natural organic fibers in contrast to workers exposed to inorganic crystalline fibers as asbestos. However, workers with a heavy exposure to paper dust or textile dust seem to have an increased risk of obstructive lung disease and bronchitis. These effects have not been causally linked to the fibrous shape of the particles but rather to the dust, chemicals absorbed on the dust or microorganisms occurring together with the dust. There is some indication that work in the textile industry may increase the risk of sinonasal cancer, but the etiological agents are unknown.

Conclusion: Natural organic fibers are not causally linked with the well-known effects of some inorganic fibers, i.e. mesothelioma, lung cancer, lung fibrosis or some pleural diseases. The health effects of natural organic fibers, e.g. irritative effects, seem not to be linked to their fibrous shape.

In plain English

This article was a literature review. It examined the respiratory effects of inhaled natural organic fibers, such as cellulose in paper and textile fibers like cotton and wool, excluding dietary fibers. Exposure was usually measured as dust, not fibers, and asbestos could also be present in these industries. The author considered asbestos a more probable cause than natural organic fibers for raised mesothelioma rates described in the paper industry. Of the men with pleural mesothelioma among paper-industry cases from a national survey, 71% had probable or certain asbestos exposure. The author judged that the data indicated paper dust is not causally linked to bronchial cancer. A reanalysis of 12 studies found raised but not statistically significant odds of sinonasal squamous cell carcinoma in textile workers. Deaths from chronic obstructive lung disease were increased in one very dusty Swedish soft-tissue paper mill. No studies were found that systematically examined non-malignant pleural diseases in workers exposed to natural organic fibers. The author concluded that these fibers are not causally linked with the well-known effects of asbestos, but should not be considered totally harmless.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: literature review
• Who was studied: Published studies, mainly of workers in pulp and paper mills (including Swedish soft-tissue paper mills) and in textile industries (cotton, wool, hemp, sisal, jute), plus a few lung tissue and animal studies
• Exposure: Natural organic fibers of vegetable or animal origin, mainly cellulose fibers in paper and textile fibers such as cotton and wool. Exposure was usually described as paper or textile dust, with levels above 30 mg/m3 reported at certain places in a Swedish soft-tissue mill in the 1980s.
• Main results:
  • A national survey based on census data identified an increased risk of pleural mesothelioma in the paper industry. A study of these cases found that 71% of the men with mesothelioma had probable or certain exposure to asbestos. The author considered asbestos a more probable cause than natural organic fibers.
  • Based on the reviewed lung cancer studies from the pulp and paper industry, the author judged that the data indicate paper dust is not causally linked to bronchial cancer.
  • In a reanalysis of 12 studies, the odds ratio for sinonasal squamous cell carcinoma was 1.39 (95% confidence interval 0.78 to 2.48) in male textile workers. The increase was described as not statistically significant.
  • In the same reanalysis, the odds ratio for sinonasal squamous cell carcinoma in female textile workers was 1.23 (95% confidence interval 0.62 to 2.43).
  • In a Swedish soft-tissue paper mill, workers with at least 10 years of exposure to more than 5 mg/m3 of paper dust had decreased respiratory function. The author cautioned that findings of mild lung fibrosis may rather reflect obstructive disorders.
  • In studies of two Swedish soft-tissue paper mills, mortality from chronic obstructive lung disease was increased in one mill (OR 3.8, 95% CI 1.2 to 12.0), where work areas had paper dust above 25 mg/m3. There was no increased mortality from respiratory diseases in the other mill.
  • No data were found that systematically studied non-malignant pleural diseases in people occupationally exposed to natural organic fibers.
• The authors' conclusion: The author concluded that natural organic fibers are not causally linked with the well-known effects of asbestos (mesothelioma, lung cancer, lung fibrosis or some pleural diseases). The author also concluded that fibers in paper mills and the textile industry are associated with obstructive lung disorders and respiratory symptoms, and textile fibers possibly with nasal cancer, and that the fibers should not be considered totally harmless.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • Existing studies of fibers in these industries were not standardized and did not use standardized sampling and analysis methods.
  • Asbestos may have been present in the paper industry, making it hard to separate its effects from those of organic fibers.
  • It is not known whether high dust levels mean high fiber exposure.

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Asbestos textiles.

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Mesothelioma, Lung Cancer, Fibrosis, Crystalline, Obstructive Lung Disease.

Related studies

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• Pulmonary fibrosis and ferruginous bodies associated with exposure to synthetic fibers — A.J. Ghio, W. Funkhouser, et al. (2006)
• Potential pulmonary effects of man-made organic fiber (MMOF) dusts — D.B. Warheit, G.A. Hart, et al. (2001)
• Health effects of natural dust: role of trace elements and compounds — A.G. Cook, P. Weinstein, et al. (2005)
• Personal exposure to asbestos and respiratory health of heavy vehicle brake mechanics — M.F. Cely-García, C.A. Torres-Duque, et al. (2015)
• Health progress in an asbestos textile works — J. Mitchell (1961)

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