You may have gotten rid of all those toxic toys and cosmetic products that may be harming the health of your son or daughter, but don't believe for a second that you're home-free.
Fact is, your home may be the real problem, according to a new report from the Ecology Group that tested some 2,300 kinds of wallpaper and more than 1,000 samples of flooring for chemicals known for their toxicity or ability to build in the environment and humans. Among the harmful chemicals detected in these products: Lead, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), cadmium, phthalates, tin, arsenic and mercury.
By the scary numbers:
* Almost all wallpaper samples that were tested contained PVC, and more than half contained at least one harmful chemical at levels above 40 ppm, including antimony, lead, tin, chromium or cadmium.
* Thirteen percent of the wallpaper samples analyzed had cadmium levels greater than 100 ppm.
* A host of phthalates made up nearly 13 percent of the weight of tested flooring samples. Also, many vinyl flooring samples contained four phthalate plasticizers, chemicals that have been banned recently in children's products.
To the good, HealthyStuff.org listed some safer alternatives, but only on the flooring side. Hardwood, bamboo, linoleum and cork flooring were free of hazardous metals including mercury, lead and cadmium, and non-vinyl flooring was 50 percent less likely to contain harmful chemical additives.
Image source: HealthyStuff.org
HealthyStuff.org/Ecology Group October 19, 2010
MSNBC October 19, 2010
Bloomberg.com October 18, 2010