Funeral directors four times more likely to develop motor neurone disease

The study found that men in jobs with a high probability of exposure to formaldehyde were about three times as likely to die of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a form of motor neurone disease also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, as those who had not been exposed to it. Most ALS death was in people with no probable exposure to formaldehyde and that has been 372 people in total.

Responding to the findings, Dr Belinda Cupid, head of research, the Motor Neurone Disease Association, said: “This is the first time that formaldehyde has been identified as a possible cause of MND and further study is required to confirm the results published today”.

The researchers said, “Our results should be interpreted cautiously”. Most people with ALS die from respiratory failure within three to five years of diagnosis, when their diaphragm and chest muscles fail and they lose the ability to breathe.

Animal studies have suggested that exposure to the preservative formaldehyde might increase the risk of ALS by causing proteins in nerve cells to fold incorrectly, as well as otherwise damaging the cells.

The researchers therefore looked at the links between death from ALS and occupational exposure to formaldehyde, using the US National Longitudinal Mortality Study (NLMS), involving nearly 1.5 million adults.

They also pointed out that female funeral directors are more likely to interact with bereaved clients and less likely to actually carry out any embalming than their male colleagues.

The research team estimated people’s on-the-job exposure to formaldehyde using criteria developed by the U.S. National Cancer Institute. Perhaps too few had jobs that exposed them to high levels of formaldehyde, making it hard to calculate risk level, the researchers said.

They calculated on the basis of that whether or not any of the people had exposure to formaldehyde at their workplace.

The researchers mentioned that only 2 men who died had very high probability of formaldehyde exposure at high levels and both had been funeral directors.

This is an observational study so no definitive conclusions can be drawn about cause and effect, and the authors caution that jobs involving a high level of exposure to formaldehyde are relatively rare, added to which funeral directors are exposed to other chemicals used in embalming as well as to bacteria, and prions.

Lucie Bruijn, chief scientist of the ALS Association, agreed with those reservations.

This is absolutely dismal news for those who perform in interment residences, because they’re more exposed in the drug at the time of embalming deadened shapes.

SOURCES: Andrea Roberts, MPH, Ph.D., research associate, Harvard University T.H.