Breathing in common cleaning products may cause more serious health damage than accidentally drinking them

By MEIKE LEONARD, HEALTH REPORTER Published: 01:14, 5 April 2026 | Updated: 02:11, 5 April 2026 Breathing in particles from common cleaning products may cause serious lung damage that is even more harmful than accidentally drinking them, a study has found. A compound found in hundreds of disinfectant sprays sold in the UK, including Lysol and Clorox, has been linked to a slew of harmful lung conditions. Known as quaternary ammonium, or QAC, the substance has been used in cleaning products since the 1940s, and has long been known to be toxic if accidentally ingested. But researchers now believe that it could be even more damaging to the lungs when inhaled. Scientists at the University of California, Davis, tested the blood of mice that were exposed to levels of airborne particles similar to those breathed in by humans when spraying a disinfectant around the home. The substance, when it entered the airway, was shown to cause significantly more damage to the lungs than if ingested. ‘The surprising result of this study was that these compounds, when inhaled, caused 100-fold more lung injury and 100-fold more lethality compared to oral ingestion,’ said lead author Dr Gino Cortopassi, biochemist and pharmacologist at the UC Davis Weill School of Veterinary Medicine. ‘We have to question whether we really want to have all of these QAC-based disinfectant sprays in the environment, given their proven lung toxicity in mice.’  A chemical ingredient present in hundreds of disinfectant sprays marketed in the UK, including major brands like Lysol and Clorox, has been tied to a range of debilitating respiratory illnesses (stock photo) Past research from the team has found that a shocking eight in ten people have some traces of QAC in their bloodstream. The substance is believed to affect how the body’s cells produce energy. A 2021 study found that participants who had the highest levels of QAC in their blood also had the lowest levels of energy in their mitochondria – the part of the cell that produces energy. Low mitochondrial energy production, in turn, has been linked to chronic fatigue, muscle weakness and brain fog. QAC exposure has also been linked to skin and eye irritation, inflammation, metabolic disruption and lung conditions including asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.