How to Get Toxic Chemicals Out of Your Home
(Page 3 of 3)
January/February 2006
By Mindy Pennybacker
3. Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDES)
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Used as flame retardants in poly-urethane furniture foam and electronics casings, PBDEs have been found to cause brain and nervous system damage, including developmental delays, in fetal and young lab animals. They're called the new PCBs because of their chemical similarity to polychlorinated biphenyls, industrial chemicals that were banned in 1978, but which persist in the environment and have caused brain damage in utero to babies whose mothers ate contaminated fish and cooking oil. PBDEs have been found in human breast milk and umbilical cord blood.
"American body levels of PBDEs are the highest in the world, 10 to 100 times those found in Europe," where PBDEs have been banned for up to ten years, says Arnold Schechter, M.D., a University of Texas professor who has found PBDEs in house dust. Sources include crumbling foam in upholstered furniture and plastic computer monitors, he says.
The maker of one common form of PBDE—penta-BDE used in foam furniture—voluntarily stopped making the chemicals in 2004. However, PBDE-laced foam may be used in products until supplies run out, and recycled foam may also contain PBDEs.
Alternatives: Naturally fire-retardant wool and safer fire-retardant chemicals are widely available. When shopping for computers, foam furniture, carpet pads, or bedding such as "eggshell" mattress toppers, ask retailers for assurances that theyre PBDE free. (IKEAs furniture has been PBDE free since 2001.)
Consider replacing worn foam furniture or, at minimum, cover and seal upholstery tears. Furniture and mattresses made with organic cotton, natural latex, and wool can be found at Furnature, Lifekind, Abundant Earth, and elsewhere. Apple, Dell, Hewlett Packard, Hitachi, IBM, Intel, and others are removing PBDEs from their electronics.
Mindy Pennybacker is editor of The Green Guide, a print and online publication that helps people protect the environment and their families health through informed product choices and other actions.
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