Gasoline fumes?!

[TheAppleCore]

So, it's common knowledge that deliberately "huffing" gasoline (or other petrochemical) vapors in order to become intoxicated is irreversibly neurotoxic, and even deadly.

But what about the fumes that we inhale incidentally at the gas pump, when we're filling our cars?! At least judging by the way the air smells, it must be fairly saturated with gasoline vapor...

Sure, stopping at the gas pump once isn't going to do any measurable damage, but if you drive around a lot, wouldn't it start to add up? How many times do you have to stand there filling up your car to inhale as much as a 13-year-old kid looking to get high?

 

[Mehm]

All California stations have special nozzles that prevent vapor from escaping. I think we should secede tbh

But I don't know the answer to your question. In other states I try to not inhale the fumes...

 

[calmAnimal]

in jersey we dont pump gas, we pump our fists.




but on a serious note, im pretty sure that smell is added to the gasoline and gasoline is odorless by itself.

 

[indelibleface]

in jersey we dont pump gas, we pump our fists.




but on a serious note, im pretty sure that smell is added to the gasoline and gasoline is odorless by itself.

This is the case with gasses like propane, which are indeed odorless (they add a sulfur-containing chemical that gives the gas a strong scent, in case of a leak), but gasoline is indeed as fragrant as you smell it. Gasoline is a mixture of hydrocarbons, like heptane, hexane, benzene, et cetera, and they all have a very strong solvent odor.

 

[MyDoorsAreOpen]

Most gas stations are very well-ventilated places, and most people only spend a few minutes there every few days. I don't think this adds substantially to the considerable amount of pollution most of us inhale on a daily basis.

I recently saw a patient who drove a gasoline tank truck and delivered gas to gas stations all day for a living, to the point where he doesn't even notice the smell anymore. He came in complaining of headaches, difficulty concentrating, and tingling in his fingers sometimes. Granted he's not healthy in other ways, but I strongly recommended to him he start looking for another job with fewer occupational exposures to toxic chemicals.