Many people use mothballs for different reasons. Mothballs are useful for many different causes, but health risks are also associated with mothballs. Using mothballs can repel moths and make things smell nice, but can also cause hemolytic anemia. Mothballs are helpful in many ways, but there is one factor in mothballs, naphthalene, that can cause health problems. Mothballs have many characteristics that are beneficial to people. One of the features of mothballs is to keep a home or building free of pests. Mothballs change from solid to gaseous at room temperature (Willert, n.d.). This gas is a toxic gas that kills moths and other insects (NPIC, 2011). This toxic gas or fumes collect in a closed container and kill the moths inside. When enough fumes accumulate and moths or other insects digest them, they are killed because the fumes are toxic (NPIC, 2011). Mothballs can also mask the odors of other unpleasant odors from the vapors released. Mothballs are a powerful deodorizer whose vapors kill insects, but these fumes can also be harmful to humans. Mothballs are useful in the right circumstances, but if in the wrong circumstances they can become harmful. Mothballs contain primarily naphthalene, but also contain traces of paradichlorobenzene (Matheson TRI.GAS, 2008). Naphthalene is a solid, which means the chemical has a defined shape and volume. At normal temperatures and pressures; Naphthalene has stable reactivity (Matheson TRI.GAS, 2008). This means that naphthalene will not react at normal temperatures and pressures, but if exposed to heat or flame, naphthalene will become more reactive. On the fire scale, naphthalene is classified 2 out of 4 (Matheson TRI.GAS, 2008). This means that naphthalene is slightly flammable. Mothball...... middle of paper ......Works CitedK. Santucci and B. Shah. (2000, January). Association of naphthalene with acute hemolytic anemia. AcademicEmergencyMedicine,7(1)42-47. Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j. 1553-2712.2000.tb01889.x/pdfMatheson TRI.GAS. (2008, December). Naphthalene. {Safety data sheet}. Retrieved from http://www.mathesongas.com/pdfs/msds/MAT16120.pdf NPIC. (May 2011).Mothballs. Retrieved from http://npic.orst.edu/ingred/ptype/mothball/index.html Soghoian.S, Nyadedzor.C, Nignpense.EP, Clarke.EEk, Hoffman.RS (January 2012). Health risks associated with the use of mothballs in Greater Accra, Ghana. Tropical medicine and international health. 17(1)135-138 Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-3156.2011.02885.x/pdfWillert. (nd). Mothballs. Retrieved from http://www.willert.clients.danskadesigns.com/files/Moth-Preventive-FAQs.pdf