CLP Health Hazards

There are a number of specific health hazards from chemicals covered by CLP-GHS.

The effects include “systemic toxicity”, that is whole-body poisoning effects (which can cover a wide range of effects from feeling mildly unwell to dying) through:

• inhalation (breathing in the chemical)
• ingestion (swallowing the chemical)
• skin contact (touching the chemical, being splashed by it etc)

There is also “specific target organic toxicity”, which affects one or more organs, but not the body as a whole. Cancer, or carcinogenic effects, are also on specific organs, but form a separate hazard class to “specific target organ toxicity”, which refers to non-cancer toxicity.

There are effects due to corrosion and irritancy, which mainly affect skin, eyes and lungs, and can occur from skin contact or inhalation. (Corrosive if swallowed is implicit in CLP rather than explicit).  Note that corrosive to skin also implies corrosive to eyes (H314 implies H318), but that irritant to skin (H315) is a separate hazard from irritant to eyes (H319).

There are also effects on the reproductive system, which can include genetic effects on sperm and egg, effects on the unborn child, effects on fertility, and hazards which can be passed from a nursing mother to a feeding baby, which can be from any exposure route.

Effects if swallowed (click on image to enlarge it).

Respiratory effects (click on image to enlarge it).

Skin and eye effects (click on image to enlarge it).

Skin only effects (click on image to enlarge it).

Eye only effects (click on image to enlarge it).

Carcinogenicity effects (click on image to enlarge it).

Mutagenicity effects (click on image to enlarge it).

Reproductive system effects (click on image to enlarge it).

Specific Target Organ Toxicity (STOT) effects (click on image to enlarge it).