Danger of Dihydrogen Monoxide

There have been reports that the chemical dihydrogen monoxide (DHMO) has been used in various products and can be dangerous to the health of people in certain situations.

This lesson will answer those questions.

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Dangers

Some of the dangers of DHMO include:

• Prolonged exposure to solid DHMO can cause severe tissue damage
• Accidental inhalation of liquid DHMO can cause death
• DMHO is a major component in acid rain

Also, DHMO is used in the production of Styrofoam.

One community in California recently considered banning foam cups because DHMO is used in the manufacture of them.

What is DHMO?

Chemistry students can analyze the name of DHMO to determine the chemical formula of the substance.

“Di-” before an element usually indicates there are two atoms of that element in the formula. Thus, there are two atoms of hydrogen.

“Mono-” or “mon-” before an element indicates there is one atom of that element in the formula. Thus, there is one atom of oxygen in the formula.

Since there are two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen in the molecule, its formula is:

H₂O

We normally call that compound water!

What are the real dangers?

There are actually some dangers from water:

Frozen water is ice. Prolonged exposure to ice can cause severe tissue damage, such as frostbite.

Accidental inhalation of too much water can cause death by drowning.

When rain passes through chemical pollutants in the air, it can acidify, turning into acid rain.

Although water is used in the production of materials like Styrofoam, it is not recommended that you eat such materials.

So, you can see that it is possible that water can be harmful in some situations.

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Have some fun

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Resources and references

Websites

DHMO.org – Tongue-in-cheek site dedicated to expose the “dangers” of dihydrogen monoxide

Scientific American – Antigravity column by Steve Mirsky, June 2004

Chemistry Resources