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Like most urban legends (such as the Glade plug-in and gel candles
rumors), this one provides very little verifiable information. Only
earlier versions contain clues to the supposed victim's identity.
Unfortunately, it's incomplete and no indication of date, location
or any other data that would help us track down reliable accounts
of this alleged tragedy are given. Searches on the tidbits that are
given return only reposts of the letter above.
The spelling of the friends name is alternately "Charliene" and her
identity is often left completely out of newer versions of this
chain. MSMKL stands for MAKTAB SAINS MARA, Kuala Lumpur, a
technical college now known as the MARA Education Foundation
College. That reference, coupled with the numerous peculiar
spelling and grammatical errors seem to indicate that this
"warning" originated in Malaysia and was translated into
English.
No explanation is given for how the cause of death was ultimately
decided to be asphyxiation by carbon monoxide - no authorities or
other source of the conclusion are named. At best, what we have
here is a lay person's supposition or misunderstanding of what
might have caused the friend's death.
So, could it happen? It's possible, given a very specific, yet
highly unlikely combination of factors. First, the room would have
to be pretty airtight. Airtight facilities typically have oxygen
exchange systems to remove toxins and keep the air breathable, so
we'll have to assume this was not the case here. Second, most air
conditioning systems can be set either to vent room air and replace
or supplement it with outside air, or recirculate the room air (for
maximum cooling). The tragedy described above could only happen if
the latter was the case.
So, in an airtight, unventilated room with recirculating,
unpurified and unsupplemented air, a burning candle could
conceivably cause asphyxiation - a closed vault comes to mind. Such
an environment would be an unhealthy place, indeed, with or without
the burning candle. One's own breathing could be deadly in such an
environment, as human respiration exchanges oxygen with carbon
dioxide. Nonetheless, we're told that it was carbon monoxide
produced by the burning candle which served to suffocate our
victim. Just as humans need Oxygen to breath, candles need oxygen
to burn. Most candles will suffocate themselves long before the
levels of oxygen in a room get low enough to cause asphyxiation in
humans.
A much more likely health risk from burning a candle in a poorly
ventilated room is soot. Soot is the by-product of inefficient
combustion. According to the Institute of Food and Agricultural
Sciences at the University of Florida, however, not much is known
about the risk of soot from burning candles: "Although researchers
have studied the health risks of soot from diesel exhaust and
factory emissions, no studies have focused specifically on
residential exposure to candles." Drafts from an air conditioner or
fans can reduce the flame's efficiency and increase the candle's
soot output by as much as 50 percent. Accumulation of tiny soot
particles in the lungs can aggravate respiratory illness, but there
are no known cases of asphyxiation from soot.
Nonetheless, U. of F. researchers recommend several tips for safe,
clean candle burning:
Burn only hard wax candles and avoid soft or gel candles.
Unscented candles produce less soot than their aromatic
counterparts.
Look for thin, braided wicks that curl when burned and avoid thick
or wire-core wicks.
Keep the wick trimmed to ensure a low, even flame.
Avoid candles poured into jars and ceramic containers - tapers and
votives burn more cleanly.
Check multi-wick pillar candles periodically to ensure even
burning.
Read the instructions that come with some candles, as some require
special maintenance.
