Did you know that SO MANY items we own and come in contact with daily are laced with harmful chemical flame retardants? That’s right…mattresses and bedding, couches, chairs and pillows, carpets and rugs, even electronics and more! And baby items are the WORST!…car seats, infant mattresses, nursing pillows, changing table pads…you name it! But what even are flame retardants, why are they bad, and how can we avoid them? Let’s start at the beginning.

So, how did this all start; why are we still using these chemicals today?

“Flame retardant chemicals were developed in the 1970s, when 40% of Americans smoked and cigarettes were a major cause of fires. The TOBACCO industry under increasing pressure to make fire-safe cigarettes, resisted the push for self-extinguishing cigarettes and instead created a fake front group called the National Association of State Fire Marshals. This group pushed for federal standards for fire-retardants in furniture.”

In 1975, California Technical Bulletin 117 (TB117) was passed requiring flame retardants in furniture. It became essentially a national standard, and although the original bill author had specifically included language requiring that any chemical used be safe for human health, politicians removed that language before the law went into effect. (surprise surprise right?)

Since then, even though numerous studies have shown that most widely used flame-retardants provide NO benefit for people and create more toxic smoke, the chemical industry has spent millions to keep TB117 and other like bills in place. (another perfect example of why I always say “follow the money”)

Isn’t that crazy!? So basically because the Tobacco industry was tired of getting sued and you know…corporate greed, we have outdated laws that are causing more harm then good. And they continue to remain outdated because again…cooperate greed. The chemical industries standing to lose the most money are lobbying the hardest to keep the laws in effect.

While many laws have been repealed and some chemicals have been banned in some states, other equally harmful chemicals have taken their place (much like BPA being taken out of plastic but replaced with equally harmful substances)…

An example of this as laid out in this study, “The chemical profiling of OPs and NBFRs fingerprints their usage pattern and suggested their wide-scale usage in consumer products as an alternative to regulated FRs. Moreover, their emission into environment puts forward a few questions like “are these chemicals safe and better alternatives than the regulated FRs?” Levels and profiling of these alternative FRs in different environmental media (i.e., biota, water, soil/sediment, dust, air, etc.) are still scantily known. Consequently, human and environmental risk assessment to these compounds is difficult from the available data”

And one more interesting quote from an environmental study, “This replacement of one commercial product by another with similar functions, and in some cases similar structures (PBBs vs PBDEs), shows that the chemical industry does respond to scientific environmental measurements and to the resulting bad publicity. This is a good thing. The problem is that often the replacement chemicals also become environmentally ubiquitous”

Are there different types of flame retardants?

“There are hundreds of different flame retardants. They are often broken into categories based on chemical structure and properties. In general, flame retardants are grouped based on whether they contain bromine, chlorine, phosphorus, nitrogen, metals, or boron.

Brominated flame retardants — Contains bromine and are the most abundantly used flame retardants. Used in many consumer goods, including electronics, furniture, building materials, etc. and have been linked to endocrine disruption among other effects. These are halogenated.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE’s) —PBDEs do not chemically bind with the products to which they are added (furniture, electronics, etc.) so they easily release from these products and enter air and dust. PBDEs can lower birth weight/length of children, and impair neurological development. (These are largely being phased out, by the way)

Tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) — Widely used to make computer circuit boards and electronics. Also used in some textiles and paper, or as an additive in other flame retardants.

Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) — An additive primarily used in polystyrene foam building materials. The primary risk to humans is from leaching out of products and getting into indoor dust. Low levels of HBCD have also been found in some food products.

Organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) — With the phasing out of PBDEs, some OPFRs have been identified as replacements.” (https://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/agents/flame_retardants/index.cfm)

Also, it’s worth noting here that when flame retardants are being used, it’s often times not just one type. Usually it’s an undisclosed combination of many that form a “proprietary blend” if you will, known only to that manufacturer or company. For example, Firemaster 550 is a popular commercial mixture of brominated and organo-phosphorus flame retardants produced by Chemtura Corp. (more about that here) There’s also decaBDE and pentaBDE commercial mixtures etc.

what effect do they have on our health?

There are literally HUNDREDS of various studies done on this topic to prove concern, but here are the overall concerns and just a few select studies from peer reviewed journals…(more cited in sources at end of post)

Various different flame retardants…

• are environmentally persistent (which means they do not break down once released into an environment. Plus, they can travel far from the point of origin, allowing them to contaminate even drinking water)
• exposure builds up and bio-accumulates in the body
• have been linked to cancer, endocrine disruption, thyroid imbalances, cardiovascular disease, cognitive delays, and decreased infertility, in both human and animal studies

In one study they found that “Prenatal exposure to PBDEs was associated with lower IQ and higher hyperactivity scores in children.” This same study states that, “Since their introduction in the 1970s, humans have accumulated PBDEs in their tissues via dust ingestion, dietary intake, absorption from dermal contact, and inhalation [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 2009; Lorber 2008]. The body burden of PBDEs in Americans is about 10 times higher than in Europeans or Asians because of previous U.S. regulations (California Technical Bulletin 117) that required the addition of flame retardants to prevent burn injuries and property damage (Sjödin et al. 2008; Stapleton et al. 2012)…The PBDEs have 209 lipophilic congeners; the major congeners (e.g., BDEs 47, 99, 100, 153) are mostly found in the pentaBDE commercial mixture used in polyurethane foams, and they have long half-lives (2-7 years) in humans (Geyer et al. 2004). Concerns have been raised about potential toxicity of PBDEs, focused mainly on thyroid-disrupting effects and developmental neurotoxicity (Costa et al. 2008). In particular, hyperactivity, decreased habituation, and deficits in learning and memory have been reported in experimental animal studies (Costa and Giordano 2007)” So, that’s alarming.

This study found that, “The present study demonstrates the ability of TBECH to activate the hAR, indicating that it is a potential endocrine disruptor” Also this study which found, “internal exposure to BFR (brominated flame retardants) metabolites may significantly contribute to the overall risk of endocrine disruption”

In this study, there was correlation that revealed a delay in puberty in girls when exposed to various flame retardants

This study founds possible correlations between flame retardants and breast cancer.

Guys aren’t off the hook though, “This analysis revealed that each IQR TPP increase in the homes was associated with a 19% decrease in sperm concentrations and a 10% increase in prolactin levels. Increased prolactin can be a marker of decreased dopamine activity and also may be associated with erectile dysfunction.”

This study showed change/damage on a cellular level when exposed to organophosphorus flame retardants also stating that, “OPFRs have been documented to trigger a range of toxicological effects including disturbances in neuronal architecture, teratogenicity, cytotoxicity and induce carcinogenicity”

“Our study implies that the metabolites of TBPH, possibly other novel brominated flame retardants, may be of potential concern for human cardiovascular disease.”

I just want to throw out there, to be fair and show the other side of the argument, there are several articles published in various peer reviewed journals that say the amount of flame retardants in dust, the environment, through dermal exposure etc aren’t enough to be harmful to humans.

However, it’s worth noting that in every study I could find saying this, bio-accumulation and exposure from multiple sources were not being taken into account and/or usually only one chemical was being observed/ measured at a time individually.

Even in these studies, it’s widely accepted that toddlers/children are exposed to/consume up to 10xs more flame retardants then adults do, by the way. Children are more susceptible to inhaling or ingesting because of their frequent hand to mouth habits.

Just a few examples of this here:

https://link-springer-com.proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/article/10.1007/s11356-020-09905-8

https://www-sciencedirect-com.proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/science/article/pii/S0269749117317803

So, What are Flame Retardants in?

Mattresses, bedding, upholstered furniture, pillows and cushions, insulation, rugs, car seats and car interiors, and electronic devices. Also, because its environmentally persistent, it can be found in our drinking water, dust in our homes, and more!

Just an example, “Flame retardants were detected in all of the house dust samples and levels of individual classes of flame retardant correlated with the popular commercial flame retardant mixtures used today (that is, decabromodiphenyl ether (decaBDE) flame retardant mixtures and Firemaster 550 (Chemtura)). In particular, the investigators found that high levels of the flame retardant components, BDE-209 and tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP), correlated with a higher incidence rate of PTC. Interestingly, although BDE-209 was included in the 2009 EPA initiative to phase out decaBDE, it is still found at high concentrations in the environment today.”

Since most flame retardants aren’t chemically bound to products, they off-gas and can settle on things like our food, dust on objects or even in the air.

I want to talk more specifically about two top offenders though…(besides dust, which arguably is the worst!)

Infant and children’s convertible car seats

According to the latest toxicity study in car seats done by the Ecology Center, 83% of the car seats tested still contain flame retardant chemicals that may be hazardous. (Also the fabrics used on car seats and foams meant for shock absorption are treated with these chemicals as well) Among those flame retardant types found were both halogenated, which include brominated and chlorinated flame retardants, and non-halogenated. (halogenated is suspected to be less toxic but still not great)

Now here’s where it gets crazy when it comes to car seats in particular. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) itself can’t justify the use of these flame retardant chemicals!!

The NHTSA “never evaluated the effectiveness of the federal motor vehicle standard in children’s car seats.” They also said they’re “unaware of any records, data or studies that indicate the current flammability standard is relevant or provides any fire safety benefit in a child’s car seat.”

In fact…Car seats that contained these flame retardants produced twice as much smoke, 7x’s as much carbon monoxide, and 70x’s as much soot as ones without flame retardants! Not only is it ineffective but it adds to injury!

THANKFULLY some companies are now trying to use less harmful chemicals and 4 major companies have now come out with infant carriers and convertible seats completely flame retardant free, mainly using wool as a natural retardant, therefore meeting the federal requirements!

Those companies are:

• Nuna
• UPPAbaby (we used their infant seat, loved it!)
• Clek (my toddler now has their fllo and we love this one too!)
• Maxi-Cosi

I personally trust UPPAbaby, Clek, and Nuna the most. Also note, it’s only certain colors these companies sell that are completely flame retardant free. i.e the UPPAbaby Henry and Jordan models etc

Also, for those of you wondering, no I wouldn’t recommend Britax flame retardant free seats because they are sneaky and aren’t truly flame retardant free…only some parts of the fabric are “washable and flame retardant free”…this doesn’t include the foam, only the outside layer directly touching then kid’s skin. This isn’t a dermal absorption issue though, it’s an inhalation problem so this does little to nothing!!

*If you’re not able to get one of these seats, check out the EC toxicity study done to find another one that’s rated “lower concern”. Lookup the car seat you are currently using and see where it lines up!

Ok onto the next item…we got this… lol

Mattresses (both adult and children’s)

Mattresses (especially kids mattresses) are loaded with chemicals like various petrochemicals, plastics and vinyls, synthetic latex (typically styrene which is a carcinogen), and you guessed it…flame retardants.

This chemical cocktail releases VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) lowering the indoor air quality. Baby and toddler mattresses contain higher amounts of chemicals and flame retardants because of the waterproofing covers…those also contain phthalates (endocrine disrupters).

One study noted that, “Although there is a robust body of literature on compositional analysis of mattress dust, there is comparatively less research on characterizing emissions of chemical contaminants from mattresses, pillows, and bed/crib frames. Several recent studies have found that infant crib mattresses are a source of a variety of chemical additives, including VOCs, plasticizers, flame retardants, and unreacted isocyanates [15], [17], [95], which can enter the infant sleep microenvironment through volatilization as they partition from the material-phase to the gas-phase.”

Obviously, this is concerning especially considering how long babies and young kids spend sleeping in bed, and also considering that our bodies do the most repairing and immune systems work the hardest at night!

And to make matters worse, companies aren’t legally required to disclose every chemical they put in mattresses.

Again, THANKFULLY there are a growing amount of companies creating safer mattresses that are flame retardant free! The ones that meet the clean living mom criteria so far are:

• Naturepedic -my favorite brand and what I personally have for my kids’ rooms (crib mattresses) and our queen bed!! We love it!! (Feel free to comment below and ask me more for a product review if you’re thinking about buying this brand)
• Soaring Heart
• Lifekind
• White Lotus (I have one of their kapok body pillows and I Love it!! Get the zipper option so you can adjust it!)
• Avocado Mattress
• My Green Mattress

Look for brands that have both the GOTS and GOLS certifications! More posts on this to come about certications…

Best Ways to limit your exposure to flame retardants:

• Clean/dust your house!! -“According to the United States EPA, indoor household dust is a primary source of exposure to flame retardants. Smaller spaces and weaker air circulation inevitably lead to higher concentrations of the gaseous and particulate phases of flame retardants indoors than outdoors.” Just dusting regularly can make a big difference! I recommend using a vacuum that has a HEPA filter!
• Buy furniture that’s been manufactured more recently – it’s a common myth that older furniture will have “off gassed” already, however as furniture foam/stuffing degrades over time, it actually off gasses more! Even though current regulations are poor, believe it or not, it used to be worse! So buying newer (like within the last decade) will help cut down on many chemicals, since many have been phased out in newer regulations. (see this site for current state regulations) You could also just try to buy non upholstered furniture…like all metal or wood etc.
• Invest in a good air filter -I know everyone can’t afford this one, but if you’re able, it makes a world of difference! Comment for my current recomendation brand wise, but in general, again look for ones with a HEPA filter
• Buy a good water filter -my favorite is clearly filtered, which filters out these chemicals!
• Switch to a flame retardant free mattress -if any larger product to switch out first, I’d recommend this one! (see mattresses section above for more on this)
• Switch out kids car seats -more on this above

Any questions? I’ve got SO many more sources below if you want to dig into this topic more!

Any information you know on these topics that I missed? What brand of car seats and mattresses do YOU use? Comment below and tell me all about it!!

Sources:

https://media.apps.chicagotribune.com/flames/index.html

https://www.gsa.gov/cdnstatic/TB_117_2013.pdf

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.estlett.8b00568

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306374715700151

https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2016/05/22/feds-blamed-for-needlessly-exposing-kids-to-cancer-causing-car-seat-chemicals/

https://search-proquest-com.proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/docview/1661372231?pq-origsite=primo

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306374715700151

https://go-gale-com.proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=uiowa_main&id=GALE%7CA332379716&v=2.1&it=r

https://link-springer-com.proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/article/10.1007/s11356-017-9336-3

https://www.saferstates.com/toxic-chemicals/toxic-flame-retardants/

https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2014-06/documents/flameretardant_consumerfactsheet.pdf

https://www.cpsc.gov/Research–Statistics/Chemicals#flame-retardants

https://www-sciencedirect-com.proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/science/article/pii/S0360132317304043

https://go-gale-com.proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=uiowa_main&id=GALE|A508998756&v=2.1&it=r

https://www-sciencedirect-com.proxy.lib.uiowa.edu/science/article/pii/S0160412017306761

https://www.ecocenter.org/healthy-stuff/pages/flame-retardant-free-children%E2%80%99s-car-seats

https://www.ecocenter.org/sites/default/files/Copy%20of%20FINAL%20ec-rpt-carseat-2016_V8.pdf

Was this post helpful for you? Then consider sharing it with a friend!

Seek Truth & Live Free