Essay Example on the Toxicant Benzene: Its Properties, Sources and Uses

Introduction

Benzene is a colorless volatile liquid with a slight sweet smell. It is one of the stable environmental pollutants because of the aromatic structure. The toxicant is slightly soluble in water at room temperature and pressure. Research studies have shown that benzene is a flammable chemical. The sources of benzene intoxication may result from the industrial waste product or biogenic sources. Products manufactured from benzene include plastics, glues, and dyes. Petroleum fuels and gasoline contain benzene intoxicant. Industrial sources contribute a lot to the intoxication by benzene. Gasoline and other pharmaceutical agents manufactured in various industries includes a large higher percentage of benzene. Exposure sources determine the severity of benzene intoxication.

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Naturally, human beings are exposed to benzene present in the environment due to the release of industrial gases to the atmosphere. The exposure from the environment may also occur due to inherent risks like oil spillage and forest fires. Anthropogenic sources contribute a lot to benzene exposure and intoxication cases (Arnold et al., 2015). Industrial operations result in the production of waste products containing higher proportions of benzene chemicals. Automobile exhausts also contain benzene intoxicant. Cigarette smoking also contributes the anthropogenic benzene exposure. The exposures occur by inhalation and direct absorption through the skin. The inhalation of benzene goes directly into the liver unchanged; therefore, causing lung and liver cancers.

How Benzene Causes Reproductive Toxicity

The severity of the adverse effects of benzene exposure depends on the concentration of the intoxicant and the time of exposure. The high level of the toxicant causes low sperm count in males. Men and boys exposed to high concentrations of benzene have the abnormal number of chromosomes in their gametes. Benzene metabolites accumulate in the body and cause abnormalities and loss and infertility in both Sterility may occur in men if the benzene in the bod is not removed through medication because the intoxicant causes DNA mutation. Benzene intoxication interferes with normal cell division. The altered cell division affects the process of spermatogenesis. Modification and fragmentation of the DNA impair with typical biological structure of the spermatozoa. The presence of free circulating catechol and phenol-hydroquinone in the bloodstream cause oxidative stress on the DNA in the sperm cells; therefore, altering the typical structure and number of chromosomes in the spermatozoa. Exposure to a high concentration of benzene alters with the normal menstrual cycle in women (Weisel, 2010). Benzene exposure also causes bone marrow defect; therefore, leading to excessive bleeding during menstrual periods. The high concentration of benzene and their accumulation in the body lead to a reduction of the size of ovaries, therefore, affecting women's fertility. Continuous exposure to benzene also affects pregnancy because fetal development is altered.

High levels of benzene in the body of pregnant women may impact the health of a child in later stages of life. The effects of intoxication may be passed from the mother to the infant, therefore, affecting a large number of people in the family (Bahadar, Mostafalou & Abdollahi, 2014). The minimum concentration of benzene that can cause reproductive toxicity is 1500-3000 ppm. The higher level of the intoxicant above 3000 ppm may cause death in human being because it results in severe mutation and destruction of genomic components, that is, DNA and RNA. The extensive damage of the nucleotides inhibits protein synthesis and normal physiology of the cell.

Limiting the Exposure to Benzene and Reversing the Effects of Intoxication

The appropriate ways of reducing the risks of benzene exposure rely on the curiosity of the people. Healthcare interventions also offer a potential measure used in limiting the incidences of benzene exposure. Reduce contact with the risks that have the potential of causing the intoxication. Industrial exposure is limited by providing gas masks to all workers. Since gasoline emits a lot of benzene, fuelling stations should be established away from homesteads to minimize possible intoxication. The treatment of the poisoning by benzene starts with the laboratory diagnosis to determine total blood count. Recent research studies have shown a close relation between leukemia and benzene (Bahadar, Mostafalou & Abdollahi, 2014). Reduced total blood count indicates the effects of benzene on the hematopoietic organs and tissues. Results from various research studies recommend supportive medical interventions for the treatment and care of victims. Benzene poisoning has no specific antidote. Immediate medical treatment works best for reversing the effects of the toxicity.

World Health Organization recommends for implementation of national campaigns to educate people on the health risks associated with benzene exposure (Arnold et al., 2015). People m should be educated on the potential effects of benzene in causing various types of cancers and reproductive toxicity on the victims. Foods that contain benzene compounds in them should be avoided the risks of exposure on the people. Proper disposal and treatment of industrial wastes also reduce the incidences of benzene intoxication. Decomposition of gasoline and combustion of petroleum contribute to the increased risks of reproductive toxicity by benzene and its compounds; appropriate prevention of the exposure involves the management of these gasoline and petroleum products.

References

Arnold, S. M., Angerer, J., Boogaard, P. J., Hughes, M. F., O'Lone, R. B., Robison, S. H., & Robert Schnatter, A. (2013). The use of Biomonitoring Data in Exposure and Human Health Risk Assessment: Benzene Case Study. Critical Reviews in Toxicology, 43(2), 119-153.

Bahadar, H., Mostafalou, S., & Abdollahi, M. (2014). Current Understandings and Perspectives on Non-Cancer Health Effects of Benzene: A Global Concern. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology, 276(2), 83-94.

Weisel, C. P. (2010). Benzene Exposure: An Overview of Monitoring Methods and their Findings. Chemical-Biological Interactions, 184(1-2), 58-66.