Study: Some Types of Candles May Pollute Indoor Air

He also suggests ventilating your home as naturally as possible by opening the windows at night once the house has cooled down. “That way you’re not breathing in the same old stale air,” he says. If you are prone to outdoor allergies, use a filter in your central air and heating systems to cut down on dust.

Simply thinking twice about the chemical products you use in your home can go a long way toward improving air quality. “A lot of things we take for granted aren’t really safe at all,” Dr. Rosenstreich says.

Barbara Miller, a spokesperson for the National Candle Association, says “no candle wax has ever been shown to be dangerous or harmful to human health.”

“Paraffin wax is neither toxic nor carcinogenic,” says Miller. “All types of properly formulated candle wax have been shown to burn cleanly and safely.”

She notes that a 2007 industry-funded study found that none of the candle waxes tested—including paraffin, soy wax, and beeswax—produced benzene. The levels of volatile organic compounds were less than 2% of the indoor air-quality standard.

In that study, nine 6-ounce candles of each type containing no fragrance or dyes were burned simultaneously in a test chamber. The test simulated four hours of daily burning of one container candle in a room about 1765 cubic feet (50 cubic meters) in size.

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