Ethyl alcohol, or ethanol, is found in many common consumer products. It also has many uses in work environments (fuels, solvents, disinfectants). Although the risks associated with alcohol consumption (ingestion) are well known, those resulting from inhalation of what is ethanol vapour and/or from skin contact are not. Therefore, the Agency has assessed the risks resulting from inhalation of ethanol vapour and/or from skin contact for the general population and in the workplace.

Ethyl alcohol, or ethanol, is found in many consumer products (household cleaning products, cleaning products, window cleaning solutions, liquid detergents, hygiene products, cosmetics, disinfectants, inks, paints and varnishes, flavourings, methylated spirits, deicing sprays, etc.). It is used in many applications as:
1.a fuel (the French government officially launched E85 in late 2006, a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% petrol, as biofuel, available in hundreds of service stations since the end of 2007);
2.a solvent (for extraction processes in laboratories and the manufacturing of paints, varnishes, inks, plastics, adhesives, explosives, perfumes, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, etc.). Ethanol dissolves fats and many plastics particularly well;
3.a disinfectant;
4.a raw material for chemical synthesis (production of acetic acid, ethyl acrylate, ethyl acetate, glycol ethers, ethylamine, ethylene, ether oxides).

Ethanol’s Effects on Health
The effects of what is ethanol on health are observed in those who consume excessive alcoholic beverages: nausea, vomiting, dizziness, even respiratory paralysis. Apart from the symptoms of intoxication observed in the short term, excessive and regular alcohol consumption has proved hazardous to health in the medium and long term.
In fact, toxicologists and epidemiologists have acquired good knowledge of the effects and mechanisms of what is ethanol ingestion. Liver cirrhosis, cancers, nervous system disorders, and foetal alcohol syndrome are the most serious pathologies caused by excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages (INSERM, 2001). It has also been recognised that inhalation of or skin contact with ethanol vapours can be a source of localised irritation. For these reasons, the Agency has studied the risks resulting from inhalation of ethanol vapour and/or from skin contact for the general population as well as in the workplace.