14 DAY TRIAL // It seems that office workers face a new health threat after the RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury) and this new threat comes from office laser printers that emit during operation large amounts of microscopic particles into the surrounding air. According to an Australian research team led by Professor Lidia Morawska from the Queensland University of Technology, the potential negative effects range from a simple respiratory irritation and up to cardiovascular system affections and even cancer. The news site ABC cited Professor Morawska in her quality as the director of the International Laboratory for Air Quality and Health when she said that the particles emitted by laser printers can reach the human lungs and even enter the bloodstream.
The chemical properties for these particles are not yet known and their release mechanism but "recommend good office ventilation to minimise the chances of particles entering the airways". In their study, the Australian team found out that 17 printers of the 62 tested could be classified as "high particle emitters" and one of them released particles at a rate "comparable to the particle emissions from cigarette smoking". This discovery seems to have happened by accident as the team was investigating the efficiency of ventilation systems in "protecting office workers from outdoor pollution". "We really didn't expect to find anything from indoor sources [but] we soon discovered that the indoor sources of pollution were far higher than the outdoor sources".
According to the findings of the Australian team, in offices with poor or no ventilation, the concentration of particles can reach high levels, increasing the health risks for workers that spend extended periods of time in offices. As the effects of these particles can range from respiratory irritation to cancer, Professor Morawska stated that government regulations should be installed to check the particle emissions for every model of laser printer used. On her list of high risk printers there are 12 HP models and one model from Toshiba. "Morawska says until governments move to regulate printer emissions, office managers should consider buying printers that are classified as low emitters. Most important however, she says, is to locate the printer "where the air flow doesn't distribute the particles to the whole office," according to ABC News null.