9 Investigates: Are 'all natural' fragrance products hazardous to your health?

ORLANDO, Fla. — 9 Investigates found people might be reacting to chemicals in an air freshener or fragrance products that surround us every day.

Channel 9's Angela Jacobs spoke to a woman who wants people to know just how harmful air fresheners and fragrances can be to your health, and there's no regulation to help.

“I can't go places. (I) can't to the mall. (I) loved going to the mall,” Nancy Copley, an allergy sufferer said.

Copley said she’s unsure of what she'll face when she heads to work, or anywhere.

Copley blames air fresheners for her asthma attacks. They’re everywhere, from public restrooms to a host of retail products for business and at home.

Copley said she had no serious allergies or asthma when she moved to Florida 10 years ago, now she has both.

More than two decades of studies link Copley’s issues to chemicals in fragrance items, that are also found in perfume, cologne and household products like cleaners and paints.

“A lot of people struggle with this,” said allergist Dr. Andrew Cooke.

Cooke is with Allergy Asthma Specialists in Orlando. He said many people who develop problems may not even know why.

“It'll be you know a number of things, or it will be the concentration of things that will bother you.”

Eyewitness News learned there's no definitive test for chemicals.

Copley said for her, it was a process of elimination, and now, coping.

“I have to carry my asthma stuff with me all the time,” Copley said.

Chemical sensitivity is covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act, but Eyewitness News found the Occupational Safety and Health Administration doesn’t have any indoor air quality standard.

Because of trade secret protection, makers of fragrance-related products face no requirement to tell anyone what's in them.

An independent study from 2007 found 12 of 14 air fresheners claiming to be "all natural or unscented" still had high levels of chemicals and have now been linked to serious health problems

Copley said she hopes lawmakers will make some changes.

“Inhaling these products and getting sick and not knowing this is what's making them sick. I think that's wrong,” Copley said.

Experts said investing in better ventilation is more effective since air fresheners add scent, but don't actually freshen air.

Cooke recommends keeping a symptom diary, to narrow down a possible irritant if you think one is bothering you. He said the over saturation of fragrance is what triggers most adverse reactions, so moderation is key.

Watch below to learn about scientists concerns about air pollution from office equipment:

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