Chemicals released by wear in climbing shoes can lead to lung problems for climbers in indoor environments

People who climb indoors are doing something for their health. However, climbing shoes contain chemicals of concern that can enter climbers’ lungs through scuffs on the soles.

In a recent study, researchers from the University of Vienna and EPFL Lausanne have shown for the first time that high concentrations of potentially harmful chemicals from the soles of mountaineering boots can be found in bouldering gym air. In some cases, it’s higher than busy streets. The results are published in the Journal ACS&T AIR.

The climbing hole is packed with a variety of smells, including sweat, chalk dust and rubber hints. A research group led by environmental scientist Tiro Hoffman at the University of Vienna has discovered that rubber wear from climbing boots can enter athletes’ lungs. Shoes contain rubber compounds similar to those used in car tires, including additives that are suspected to be harmful to humans and the environment.

“The soles of climbing shoes are just as high-performance products as car tires,” explains Anya Sherman, the first author of the study and an environmental scientist at the Centre for Microbial Environmental Systems Science (CEMESS) at the University of Vienna. Additives are specific chemicals that make these materials more elastic and durable. They are essential to their function.

Sherman himself enjoys climbing as a balance of work in the lab and computer. At the meeting, she met Thibault Masset from the Ecole Polytechnic Federare de Lausanne (EPFL). The two researchers and the first authors of equality came up with the idea of ​​testing the rubber in their climbing shoes using the same scientific methods used to analyze car tires.

“We were familiar with the black residue from the climbing gym holds, the scuffs from the soles of our shoes. Climbers wipe it off and get a better grip and get kicked into the air,” adds Sherman.

Sherman, an impangel-equipped particle measuring device that mimics human respiratory tracts, worked with Lean Daily’s research group to collect atmospheric samples at five bouldering gyms in Vienna. The impinger draws air at a rate of 60 liters per minute and separates the particles in the same way that they enter the human lungs. Other dust samples for this study were collected in collaboration with EPFL Lausanne, a bouldering gym in France, Spain and Switzerland.

“The air pollution at the bouldering gym was higher than expected,” says corresponding author Tiro Hoffman.

It was impressive that the concentration of rubber additives was particularly high in places where many people climb in limited spaces.

Hofmann concludes that “the levels we measured are the highest and most documented in the world, comparable to the huge multi-lane roads.”

With 30 pairs of shoes tested, the team found some of the same contaminants as the tires in the car. Among the 15 rubber additives found was 6PPD, a rubber stabilizer linked to the products converted to river salmon kills.

It is still unknown what this means for human health. However, Hoffman emphasizes, “These substances do not belong to the air we breathe. It makes sense to act before we know all the details of the risk, especially with regard to sensitive groups such as children.”

Sherman also notes that the bouldering gym operators investigated were extremely supportive and showed a high level of interest in improving the gym’s air quality.

“This constructive cooperation should lead to the creation of the healthiest climbing hole environment possible, including healthier ventilation, cleaning, avoiding peak times, and designing climbing shoes with additives.”

“It’s essential to switch to the only material that’s low in harmful substances,” says Hoffman. He says the manufacturers are not fully aware of the issue at the moment. The rubber you buy for the sole contains cocktails of unwanted chemicals. Further research is needed to understand how these substances affect the human body.

The Shaman continues to motivate him. “I will continue to climb and I am confident that our research will contribute to a better situation in gym climbing.”