On Saturday, April 20, 1991 at 8:10:26 PM UTC-5, Dale Southard wrote:   
   > In article <8260@drutx.ATT.COM> msg@druhi.ATT.COM (GrahamM) writes:   
   > >Is breathing anti-freeze fumes dangerous?   
   > >   
   > >My car has a leak in the heater core, thus the hot air smells like   
   > >anti-freeze. Can it stay like this for long with no ill effects?   
   > >   
   >    
   > How much do you drink??   
   >    
   > The major anti-freeze component is ethylene glycol HOCH2-CH2OH.  When   
   introduced   
   > into the human body, it is a substrate analog of ethanol and will be acted on   
   > by the alchohol dehydrogenase (ADH) enzyme, which will convert it to   
   HO2C-CO2H   
   > (oxalic adic) over a few steps.  Oxalic acid is poisonous.   
   >    
   > But, if you drink lots of alcohol, a competitive inhibition "race" is started   
   > between the ethylene glycol --> oxalic acid and the ethanol --> acetaldehyde   
   > reactions, giving your body more time to purge the oxalic acid.   
   >    
   > This is simular to the mechanism for methanol poinsoning (but the end product   
   > is formaldehyde).   
   >    
   > Note:  I am an organic chemist -- any biochem types out there feel free to   
   > add to/correct the above statements.   
   >    
   > Oh, I would doubt that you are getting enough ethylene glycol to be   
   dangerous,   
   > but if you are getting hangovers after driving for a while, I would become   
   > concerned.  (Not to mention that anti-freeze hasn't been cheap since the    
   > ethylene glycol plant blew up, but that is another story).   
   >    
   >    
   >    
   > -->  -->  Dale  UVa  (ds4a@virginia.edu)   
   My grandson has been breathing fumes antifreeze fumes from heat core damage in   
   jeep.  My eyes would burn and it hurt my throat but I could not make my son or   
   daughter in law believe it was injuring their son.  He will soon be 6 and   
   they  finally believe    
   he has problems without admitting it is from antifreeze.  He can get   
   uncontrollable in an instant without provocation.  They think it is adhd.  I   
   think it goes further than than.  where can I get more information. Pat   
   (simplypat@gmail.com)   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)