CURRENT ISSUE
TOTAL WORKER HEALTH
The Journey to "Be Well"
In the last few years, Eugene, Ore. has proven to be an ideal environment for implementing the NIOSH Total Worker Health initiative. The city serves as an excellent example of how medium-sized or small organizations can engage with TWH.
STANDARDS
First Choice
The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act requires that government agencies use consensus standards. As a result, consensus standards have begun to appear with more regularity in federal directives, guidelines, regulations, and requirements by citation or by reference.
Follow the Fresh Air
Industrial hygienists rely on instruments to measure all kinds of exposures. We are the samplers, and instruments are part of the process of risk assessment. But over-reliance on instrumentation when performing indoor air quality investigations can be a detriment.
VIEWPOINT
CHEMICAL AND MATERIAL HAZARDS
Versatile and Vexing
From the December 2016 issue: The multipurpose compound peracetic acid has applications in several industries and is considered environmentally friendly. But it is also an irritant to workers, and little health and safety guidance exists for its use.
CONTROLS
Raising Health's Profile
A project team from AIHA's Construction Committee has developed new materials to raise awareness about health and to target common construction health hazards in the United States and Canada.
BY THE NUMBERS
Outbreak of Lung Disease Associated with E-Cigarette Use
In late August, CDC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced an investigation of an outbreak of severe lung disease associated with the use of e-cigarette products.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Take Control of Your Development
A critical tool for every professional (not just early-career professionals) is a formal development plan—a roadmap that helps ensure you meet your personal and professional goals. Even seasoned professionals need to review their development plans and their career progression.
SPONSORED CONTENT
Go With the Flow
With over 100,000 different chemicals in use in industries across the globe, correct monitoring and reporting procedures have perhaps never been more vital in ensuring worker safety and legal compliance.
FROM THE ARCHIVES
CHEMICAL AND MATERIAL HAZARDS
The Ear Poisons
From the November 2018 issue: Noise is not the only etiology of hearing loss. Enter ototoxicants—chemical substances that cause hearing loss once they are introduced to the body through the traditional routes of exposure.
CHEMICAL AND MATERIAL HAZARDS
Electronic Cigarettes and the IH
From the May 2019 issue: AIHA’s white paper on e-cigarettes was recently updated to discuss the latest research on e-cigarette hazards. How should industrial hygienists and safety and health professionals address the occupational and public health concerns associated with e-cigarettes?
Although the print version of The Synergist indicated The IAQ Investigator's Guide, 3rd edition, was already published, it isn't quite ready yet. We will be sure to let readers know when the Guide is available for purchase in the AIHA Marketplace.
My apologies for the error.
- Ed Rutkowski, Synergist editor
Disadvantages of being unacclimatized:
- Readily show signs of heat stress when exposed to hot environments.
- Difficulty replacing all of the water lost in sweat.
- Failure to replace the water lost will slow or prevent acclimatization.
- Increased sweating efficiency (earlier onset of sweating, greater sweat production, and reduced electrolyte loss in sweat).
- Stabilization of the circulation.
- Work is performed with lower core temperature and heart rate.
- Increased skin blood flow at a given core temperature.
- Gradually increase exposure time in hot environmental conditions over a period of 7 to 14 days.
- For new workers, the schedule should be no more than 20% of the usual duration of work in the hot environment on day 1 and a no more than 20% increase on each additional day.
- For workers who have had previous experience with the job, the acclimatization regimen should be no more than 50% of the usual duration of work in the hot environment on day 1, 60% on day 2, 80% on day 3, and 100% on day 4.
- The time required for non–physically fit individuals to develop acclimatization is about 50% greater than for the physically fit.
- Relative to the initial level of physical fitness and the total heat stress experienced by the individual.
- Can be maintained for a few days of non-heat exposure.
- Absence from work in the heat for a week or more results in a significant loss in the beneficial adaptations leading to an increase likelihood of acute dehydration, illness, or fatigue.
- Can be regained in 2 to 3 days upon return to a hot job.
- Appears to be better maintained by those who are physically fit.
- Seasonal shifts in temperatures may result in difficulties.
- Working in hot, humid environments provides adaptive benefits that also apply in hot, desert environments, and vice versa.
- Air conditioning will not affect acclimatization.
Acclimatization in Workers