Easy-Off Oven Cleaner sent my mother to the hospital.

My friend just recently used Easy off oven spray without using gloves,
and now she has the same or similar symptoms as those of your Mother.
I would like to know if there has been any new found evidence of a
cure or something that can be done about it. Your feedback is very
much appreciated ASAP. I am very worried. Thanks.

A few years ago a friend and I were helping my mom clean house and my
friend got the job of cleaning the oven. She had never used Easy-Off
before so she read the directions and followed them (including wearing
gloves) but almost imediatly she started having a reaction. We took
her to the ER and they confermed it was an allergic reaction to the
oven cleaner. It was pretty bad but not once, even after it was all
over, did we think of blaiming the makers of the product for the
reaction. The ingedients are listed and it tells you what precautions
to take. Sometimes stuff still happens though.

All the "green" products in the world can't clean an oven like Easy-
Off. For many years the instructions have been very explicit. If a
consumer chooses to ignore, well so be it. My next stove/oven will be
self cleaning then I won't have to glove up. Hope all is well with
Mother and consider it a lesson learned.

is a wet pumice stone, or even a Brillo pad. No fumes.

Not the products fault that your mom has an autoimmune disorder.
She did not use product as required.

autoimmune?


that's probably what happened then. If you have autoimmune diseases
then small exposures to bacteria and viruses will have BIG results on
you.


Meaning that say... say you don't wear your gloves when using oven
cleaner and your skin splits a bit and blisters.

Then bacteria has a way into your body. Normally it won't matter but
if you have an autoimmune disease then that bacteria can affect you
greatly.



But it brings us back to the original issue... wear your PPE when
using chemicals.


I know you want to raise a case where you suggest the can was full of
bacteria but no scientist will agree with you - the environment inside
the can is too harsh for bacteria to flourish. Heck even dreaded
viruses can be killed outside the body by chemicals that are less
harsh then the stuff in oven cleaner.


So most likely something got inside her after the hands blistered.
that's probably when she got infected.


but again this can result from not wearing PPE.


always wear the correct PPE for what you're doing.

This is what's written on our oven cleaner:

"Protect hands with long rubber gloves" - it's the FIRST step on
product usage.

If she chose to not wear gloves then all the research you do will be
for nothing. You can't win if you fail to follow the safety
instructions.


And then, if you read down the can you'll see instructions on how to
treat exposure.

and my can even says "skin contact will cause burns"




Before using this product again please read the entire label.
especially if it's your first time using it.


my boyfriend *rolls eyes* didn't bother either. yes his hands started
to burn a bit. Me... i put gloves on and had no trouble.

go figure

So let me get this straight. The next day all her fingers were
blistering and peeling. A week later, flu like symptoms, a rash all
over her upper body and face and her fingers are no better. By the
FOURTH week, her hands swelled up and a FEW days later her feet as
well. THEN, clearly a few days beyond 4 weeks, you finally take this
poor woman to the ER?

And you beleive Easy Off did something wrong? If you seriously
beleived she had suffered some kkind of chemical reaction with those
symptoms, why on earth would you wait so long to get her help?

Something seems off here and it ain't easy!

did she wear rubber gloves? I'm thinking not. That stuff is somewhat
caustic. When you went to the ER, did you tell them about the
cleaner? In any case, hope she get much better.

if the hospital said she has an autoimmune issue, how is that the
fault of the product? The whole premise of autoimmune is that the
body attacks itself, right?

The fact that the issue persisted long after the product was used
would make it sound as if there was something more to the problem than
just contact with the cleaner.

And her fingers began to blister and split and it was "No big deal???"
That would have been my FIRST concern to get her to the ER!

That's the same thing I thought. I don't know if this is the case,
but I know some of the realities of parent not having medical
insurance and having to make the hard decision of when to seek medical
treatment. Regardless, I can't see how 10 fingers blistering and
split are not a big deal.

Did she get the product on her skin?

Was she using the regular brand of Easy off or the fume free? I have
used both and have to hold my breath when spraying, even when using
the fume free kind. It does say on the can to use in a well
ventilated area using long rubber gloves. Since this was the first
time she used it did she read all of the label?

As I am currently looking at the label of a can of Heavy Duty (fresh
scent my butt)regular Easy Off oven cleaner it does say that it is
corrosive and will burn skin and eyes. It gives first aid if it comes
in contact with eyes, skin or if swallowed. It does say "Wear rubber
gloves. Do not get on skin, clothing or in eyes."

I have been using it for 20 years to clean my ovens and I haven't had
any reactions, and I don't wear gloves anymore." Maybe she just had a
bad allergic/chemical reaction to one or more of the chemicals in
there. Remember allergies can pop up, even after using something for
a long time. It happens to everyone and even to the best of us.

I hope she gets better.

I'm sorry to hear about your mother. Unfortunately, she must have had
a bad reaction to it or used it incorrectly since millions of people
have used the product over the years safely. It sounds like her
fingers got some chemical burns on them if they blistered and split.
Maybe since it was her first time using it she didn't follow the
direction correctly.

I use it all the time, no issues here. Did she use the thick yellow
gloves as indicated? Did she make sure there was plenty of
ventilation?

It sounds like she had an allergic reaction to something, how can you
be sure it was easy off?

phin y.,

Stop back and let us know what the company says.

Did the cleaner eat through her gloves?

BillR.