PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum - View Single Post

rcounts · #45 10-22-2009, 12:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vstech

it's not the Diesel he's talking about, it's the DIRTY MOTOR OIL that is the carcinogen!
don't let that stuff soak into your skin for long.

OK, well, what he said is "diesel is a carcinogen". If he meant dirty motor oil is carcinogenic, I'd think that would be what he would have said.

I did a little research on this. Everything I found said that "continous contact with dirty used oil has been found to cause skin cancer in laboratory rats".

Reminds me of the studies they used to get saccharine banned. They fed rats saccharine at a level the equivalent of a human drinking 59 cases of diet pop per day, and SURPRISE! It gave them cancer.

Same thing with the dirty used motor oil. Unless you are wearing clothing soaked in it in continuous contact with your skin - just like they did with the rats - the cancer risk is negligable, if it exists at all.

I swear, the sensationalism of the media, and the way it gets people all worked up about these things is turning us all into chicken little. They either extremly over-hype the risk and/or fail to discuss, or even actively downplay, the kind of extreme circumstances that produce the risk.

All people remember is the sensational part about "it caused cancer in rats" - not the part about the rats having to be kept soaked in it for weeks on end in order for it to cause the cancer.

No one repeats that part - only the "it causes cancer part" gets repeated over and over again until people think a drop on their skin puts them at serious risk.

If the risk were significant, there would be a LOT of professional mechanics coming down with skin cancer, and there would be multiple studies to evaluate the risk. Ever heard of any such thing? No, because the risk from getting dirty oil on your hands, as long as you eventually clean if off, is small enough to be effectively ZERO.

What I did find is one study that says professional mechanics have a 30% higher incidence of rheumetoid arthritis, which MAY be linked to exposure to the toxins in used oil. THAT'S IT! That's why I'm so stiff and sore the day after I spend several hours crawling around on the ground working on a car! Its because I get exposed to used motor oil! And here I always thought it was because of the NATURE of the work! Nah, hard physical work, day in and day out, couldn't be the main reason mechanics have more arthritis problems than those who sit behind a desk all day. Could it?

I know, I know, a lot of people will say "better safe than sorry, right"? WRONG. Worrying about every ridiculously infitesimal risk is worse for your health than all of these tiny risks added together will ever be!

Sorry for the rant...