Today I was contacted by Vivien Pomfrey who has started a peition on the 10 Downing Street website (UK Government site) calling on the Prime Minister to protect UK citizens from artificial perfumes in all their forms.

I have just signed the petition and hope that if you are a UK citizen you will do the same. Vivien and myself also hope that those of you from other countries will petition your own governments through whatever means possible. This is an issue that has widespread implications for human health and the environment and deserves much more attention than it currently receives.

 Thank you!

Here is the email from Vivien with the link to the petition and more information she has compiled:

There is now a petition to Downing Street demanding a ban on the uncontrolled public use and importation of artificially-perfumed products at http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/Scents/

You need to be a UK citizen or resident to sign this petition.  If you are not a UK citizen, why not start a petition to your own government?  You are welcome to use anything from mine.

Please sign the petition if you are entitled to do so, and pass on the information to all other individuals, email lists, forums, blogs, social networking sites, etc., where there may be interest and/or concern about the issue.

Background info about the human health hazards can be found here:   http://vivienpomfrey.co.uk/parfum

There is also danger to wildlife, for example from the hormone-disrupting activity of some of the chemicals, and another scientist has agreed with me that artificial perfumes may be contributing to the decline in pollinating insects such as bees, which could be catastrophic for food production.  Perfume production also involves the profligate use of petrochemicals and energy.

I attach a flyer which could be distributed as it is or modified to your requirements.  I am going to distribute them via my local health food shop.

The petition will be live until 19th June 2010.

Let's take this opportunity to raise maximal awareness of the menace of artificial perfumes.

Thank you and best wishes.

Vivien Pomfrey MSc

Below is the text of the petition itself:

We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to protect the public from exposure to artificial perfumes.

Untested perfumes are released from an increasing range of products, including cosmetics, air ‘fresheners', laundry products and toys, and exposure is becoming unavoidable. Children are growing up in a perfumed chemical fog. The products are linked with:

• skin, eye and lung irritation
• impaired thinking
• allergy
• earache
• obesity
• vomiting
• diarrhoea
• urinary infection
• hormone disruption
• depression
• immune and nervous system damage
• genital deformity
• genetic mutation

Perfumes may be harming bees, which are vital for food production.

We request the government to prohibit the release of artificial perfumes; require labels on artificially-perfumed products stating that the chemicals are untested and may harm adults, children and foetuses; make manufacturers stop using artificial perfumes, including 'masking fragrances'; ban the importation of artificially-perfumed products; fund research ON HUMANS into health risks of artificial perfumes; and clarify existing legislation to define artificial perfume release as pollution, neighbour nuisance and anti-social behaviour.