City Council members in the city of Portland, Oregon are considering and are expected to approve a fragrance-free policy for city workers. City employees would be banned from using perfume, aftershave, and strongly scented powder, deodorant and other personal hygiene products at work. If the measure is passed, workers could be penalized for wearing too much scent. It is not clear how much is “too much.”
The reason is to protect employees who are sensitive to perfumes as well as those who suffer from asthma. However, perfume allergies are primarily skin contact allergies. The chemicals in fragranced products seep into the skin and can cause eczema, characterized by itchy rash, dry skin and redness. People who have perfume allergies are advised to scrutinize their perfumes and body products for the specific chemicals that trigger their symptoms and avoid them or to spray perfume on their clothes, rather than directly on their skin. However, other people’s perfume typically does not affect them.[1]
Those with asthma, however, are a different story. Although it is not clear which of the multiple compounds within perfume are responsible for aggravation of their symptoms, the fact is that perfume does affect them negatively.
Perhaps, instead of banning fragrances for everyone outright, Portland could make decisions on a case-to-case basis where there is a legitimate health issue. And if you are a perfume wearer, and you know a co-worker is sensitive to fragrances, you should have compassion and save your fragrance for the weekend.
If Portland does pass the measure, let’s hope that city employees don’t start complaining about their co-workers’ au natural body smells.
[1] The Relationship Between Perfumes and Allergies, http://www.brighthub.com/health/allergies-asthma/articles/90680.aspx
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