Today on sale you can find various candles – household, decorative, scented. You can choose any shape and color. The composition of the products is also different.

The most affordable are paraffin candles. At the same time, they are beautiful, have a pleasant aroma. However, many question whether paraffin wax for candle is safe for health. Let’s figure this out.

Features and composition

Today paraffin wax for candles is considered the most demanded material for the production of candles. Due to its cheapness, it seriously pressed stearin and wax back at the beginning of the 19th century.

Such products look attractive, are lightweight, and can be painted in any color. Artificial fragrances give the candles a rich aroma. Many people buy such light sources to decorate the house, create a festive atmosphere, and aromatize the room.

However, it should be understood that unlike beeswax, which is an environmentally friendly product produced by bees, paraffin wax for candles is far from natural.

It is a synthetic wax-like substance that is obtained from petroleum. By itself, paraffin wax for candles is colorless and odorless. The melting point of the material is + 45– + 65 ° С.

Due to its low thermal conductivity, the paraffin wax for candles easily takes the desired shape. In addition, it lends itself well to coloring and goes well with flavorings.

Modern manufacturers produce various versions of such candles. These are teapots in sleeves, ordinary products, scented figured variants and models in glass. In addition to the attractive appearance, the advantages of paraffin candles include a long shelf life.

As for the disadvantages, they are also present and even override the advantages. The burning time of paraffin candles is 2-3 times less than that of beeswax analogs.

And also paraffin wax for candles cannot maintain its shape for a long time when heated. If you burn such a candle for a long time, it may begin to deform.

That is why the material is often poured into glass molds. Sometimes natural wax, stearin, ceresin are added to paraffin products in small doses. This allows you to increase the density of the product and its resistance to high temperatures, but does not fundamentally change the situation.

Important! A more significant disadvantage of paraffin wax for candles is the black smoke that sometimes occurs during combustion. This sign indicates the use of unrefined material in the production. Moreover, prolonged use of paraffin products can cause serious harm to human health.

During combustion, they release dangerous toxic compounds.

One of them is benzene. It can enter the lungs of a person while breathing. When large doses of such a substance enter the body, weakness and dizziness may occur.

Due to the frequent use of paraffin candles, a person may experience sleep problems. If the toxin is regularly exposed to the body for several years, it can lead to diseases of the liver, kidneys and other organs. The substance can adversely affect the functioning of the nervous and circulatory systems.

Toluene is the second hazardous component released into the air during the combustion of this type of candle. It also enters the human body through the respiratory system.

Sometimes a skin effect is also possible. This toxic substance also badly affects the blood and leads to disruption of the nervous system.