The scientists who carried out the study advised that such products should be avoided and can normally be replaced with simple microfibre cloths and water.

“While the short-term effects of cleaning chemicals on asthma are becoming increasingly well documented, we lack knowledge of the long-term impact,” said Professor Cecile Svanes, a medic at the University of Bergen and the senior author of the study.

“We feared that such chemicals, by steadily causing a little damage to the airways day after day, year after year, might accelerate the rate of lung function decline that occurs with age.”

The research was published in the American Thoracic Society’s American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

While the results appear dramatic, the researchers speculated chemicals in cleaning products irritate the fragile mucous membranes lining the lungs, which over time leads to lasting damage and “remodeling” of the airways.

“When you think of inhaling small particles from cleaning agents that are meant for cleaning the floor and not your lungs, maybe it is not so surprising after all,” said Øistein Svanes, a doctoral student who led the study.

For entire The Independent