The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
More than half of Canadians do not perceive carbon monoxide poisoning to be a serious risk despite it being the number one cause of accidental death in North America, finds a January 2005 National OmniCan study commissioned by Kidde(R). Carbon monoxide (CO) is an odourless, colourless and tasteless gas and is one of the least understood dangers around the home. Per the study results, young people aged 18 - 24, are the least aware of the causes of CO poisoning (24 per cent), and alarmingly, 16 per cent of the total 1,501 Canadians surveyed could not name a single risk factor. One-half of people surveyed knew that CO poisoning can be attributed to fuel-burning household appliances such as furnaces, while 36 per cent consider CO only as a by-product of vehicles. The common sources of CO around the home are fuel-burning appliances such as furnaces, water heaters, ovens and clothes dryers as well as wood or gas fire places and attached garages. "Carbon monoxide is a potential threat in the majority of Canadian homes. It is especially important that homes have at least one CO alarm in winter when there is an increased use of furnaces and many people spend more time in their homes," says Carol Heller, Vice President, Residential Products for Kidde.
