Women who regularly clean could be at risk of a long-term health issue. Research has shown that exposure to cleaning chemicals could result in a greater decline in lung function.

The study also found that the effect of 10 to 20 years of cleaning on the lungs was comparable to 10 to 20 years of smoking a pack of cigarettes every day. As part of the study, researchers at the University of Bergen in Norway analysed data from 6,235 participants.

They followed these participants, whose average age was 34 when they enrolled, for more than 20 years. Senior study author Cecile Svane, a professor at the university's Centre for International Health, commented in Science Daily: "While the short-term effects of cleaning chemicals on asthma are becoming increasingly well documented, we lack knowledge of the long-term impact.

• Doctor explains what happened after dandelion 'cured' man's deadly cancer


• NHS issues 'see a GP' warning over life-threatening infection

"We feared that such chemicals, by steadily causing a little damage to the airways day after day, year after year, might accelerate the rate of lung function decline that occurs with age."

The authors theorised that the decline in lung function is attributable to the irritation that most cleaning chemicals cause on the mucous membranes lining the airways.

The study took into account participants’ forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) - this is the amount of air a person can forcibly exhale in one second. Compared to women not engaged in cleaning, the FEV1 declined 3.6 milliliters (ml) a year faster in women who cleaned at home and 3.9 ml a year faster in women who worked as cleaners.

Forced vital capacity (FVC), or the total amount of air a person can forcibly exhale, was also measured. This declined 4.3 ml a year faster in women who cleaned at home and 7.1 ml a year faster in women who worked as cleaners.

Although the level of lung impairment was surprising at first,lead study author Øistein Svanes, said: "However, when you think of inhaling small particles from cleaning agents that are meant for cleaning the floor and not your lungs, maybe it is not so surprising after all."

But, Science Daily noted, the study did not find that the ratio of FEV1 to FVC declined more rapidly in women who cleaned than in those who did not. The metric is used when diagnosing and monitoring patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD. Further to this, the study did find that asthma was more prevalent in women who cleaned at home (12.3 per cent) or at work (13.7 per cent) compared to those who did not clean (9.6 per cent).

The study also did not find that men who cleaned, either at home or at work, experienced greater decline in FEV1 or FVC than men who did not. Researchers noted that the study population included very few women who did not clean at home or work.

On top of this, the number of men who worked as occupational cleaners was also small, and their exposure to cleaning agents was likely different from that of women working as cleaning professionals.

Svanes added: "The take home message of this study is that in the long run cleaning chemicals very likely cause rather substantial damage to your lungs. These chemicals are usually unnecessary; microfiber cloths and water are more than enough for most purposes."

He concluded that public health officials should strictly regulate cleaning products and encourage producers to develop cleaning agents that cannot be inhaled.