Understanding Industrial Hygiene

The field of industrial hygiene is an age-old discipline.  As a practicing industrial hygienist, I am frequently asked satirically if I clean teeth in industry, since the term hygiene is normally associated with dental hygiene.  The term hygiene, as defined by Meriam-Webster, is, “a science of the establishment and maintenance of health,” and/or “conditions or practices (as of cleanliness) conducive to health.”  Interestingly, the art and science of industrial hygiene is dedicated to ensuring a clean and safe workplace and/or environment for the worker and how that work may impact the public from a health perspective.  Therefore, dental hygiene and industrial hygiene are different disciplines with the same goal, which is to ensure a clean environment whether it be in the workplace or in one’s mouth. 

The history of industrial hygiene dates back to the 4th century B.C.E. when the Greek Physician, Hippocrates, cited lead toxicity in the mining industry.  During the 18th Century Bernardo Ramazzini, an Italian Physician, published “De Morbis Artificum Diatriba” (The Disease of Workmen) which addressed multiple occupations, such as cobblers, tailors, weavers, and carpenters.  Ramazzini’s early preventive measures were that workers should cover their faces to avoid breathing in dust.  His cautions to protect workers and his admonition that any doctor called on to treat patients of the working class ask, “What occupation does he follow?” earned Ramazzini the appellation “Father of industrial hygiene.”  [Reference:  The Occupational Environment – Its Evaluation and Control, A publication of the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA)] 

In the 20th Century, in the United States, Dr. Alice Hamilton told many professionals about “evidence that there was a correlation between worker illness and exposure to toxins” and “presented definitive proposals for eliminating unhealthful working conditions.”  Similar to Rammazini, Alice Hamilton earned the designation as the “Mother of industrial hygiene.”  [Reference:   Industrial Hygiene: Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow, by Alex Saurman.]

Important factors that led to the growth of the industrial hygiene discipline were the creations of regulatory programs.  The first industrial hygiene programs were not established until 1913 in the United States.  It was not until 1970 when the Occupational Safety and Health Act was established in the United States forming the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). 

So what is industrial hygiene?  OSHA’s definition is, “that science and art devoted to the anticipation, recognition, evaluation, and control of those environmental factors or stresses arising in or from the workplace, which may cause sickness, impaired health and well-being, or significant discomfort among workers or among the citizens of the community.”  [Reference:  https://www.osha.gov]  Currently, industrial hygienists perform a variety of tasks as part of their job in mitigating risks, by using applied scientific principles to identify hazards, compile and analyze data about workplace risks, interpret toxicology reports, develop controls and programs to address workplace hazards, and manage and monitor programs to improve health in the workplace and community.  Industrial hygienists analyze worksites to identify workplace hazards, such as, but not limited to, chemical exposures, construction/industrial accidents involving fall protection equipment, ladders, working in or around confined spaces, and personal protective equipment.  Many hazards that industrial hygienists assess and evaluate fall under the following:  air contaminants (dust, silica, volatile organic compounds), biological (molds, viruses, bacteria, blood borne pathogens), chemical (acids, bases, solvents, corrosives), ergonomic (materials handling, workplace station setup), and physical (noise, heat and cold stress, compressed gas cylinders, trip and falls on surfaces).  In addition, industrial hygienists need to assess the workplace to evaluate how workplace exposure to contaminants or physical hazards may impact the community and the public, such as lead exposure from faulty piping and/or water and air pollution. 

Industrial hygiene is an important and overlooked discipline.  Remember, in the workplace, in the community and at home a frequently used industrial hygienist’s slogan is “safety is always first!”

Contact us to see if our industrial hygienist can assist you with your matter, whether it be an ergonomic issue, chemical exposure, workplace safety, industrial accident, or an indoor air quality issue involving mold or other indoor contaminants.