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Flame retardants in upholstered furniture


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How concerned should I be?

 

I'm shopping online for an upholstered piece to fit in a reading nook. I've been at it a long time, trying to find exactly the right size, shape and color. I have finally found the perfect settee, which overall receives wonderful reviews except this one I just came across about it being "bathed in cancer causing flame retardants" and subject to disclosure of the carcinogens under CA law.

 

What should I think about this? Is the majority of upholstered furniture treated this way and most people don't care? Please share what you know.

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It is a California law since September 2014 to have to declare flame retardants in upholstered furniture. It was also in the local news.

 

“(e) A study by the California Environmental Protection Agency found that women in California have much higher levels of toxic flame retardants in their breast tissue than women in other states and countries. Studies published in the journal of Environmental Research show that children in California have much higher levels of flame retardant chemicals than children elsewhere in the country.

(f) A study published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine concluded that firefighters have a significantly elevated risk of cancer that may be attributed to toxic chemicals they inhale, including flame retardants.

(g) Various studies have linked exposure to flame retardants to cancer, lower IQs and attention problems, male infertility, male birth defects, and early puberty in girls.â€

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201320140SB1019

 

2012 abc7news http://abc7news.com/archive/8901109/

“Eight out of 10 couches contain flame retardant chemicals that are linked to heightened cancer risk, developmental delays in children or are lacking adequate health information, according to a study released today by UC Berkeley and Duke University researchers.â€

 

ETA:

EPA article: Reducing Your Child's Exposure To Flame Retardant Chemicals

https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2016-05/documents/flame_retardant_fact_sheet_3-22-16.pdf

Edited by Arcadia
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I don't know how concerned you should be.

 

We try to avoid what we can re: flame retardants because we've had actual reactions. What we can't avoid, we minimize and try to manage with help from our doc.

 

My son is extremely sensitive. A new mattress - conventional - caused months of misery and middle of the night asthma when he was 4. It was a lightbulb moment when our doc connected the dots to the new mattress. We got him a flame retardant free mattress and no more mid-night asthma. So we saw clear results. That's motivating. We went on to specific tests, and we know he is highly sensitive to certain flame retardants.

 

That said, we don't have retardant free couches etc. I figure a mattress where he spends 8 hours a night is important but we can't afford to do the whole house, for now. We do, however, have a special charcoal air filter which filters out VOCs, if a newer item is outgassing, and a floor that is treated with a surface that (supposedly) filters VOCs as well.

 

If this is for a reading nook, I probably wouldn't stress about it, personally. I'd be more worried about mattresses, and pillows. :) If you can find and afford another option, though, go for it!

Edited by Spryte
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I will shop more, but I am seriously curious about other purchases I've made. It's something I never gave much thought to before. Sorry about your little guy's asthma, Spryte. I will definitely pay attention to future purchases, especially bedding.

 

I'm getting frustrated with this one item, though. I know exactly what I need, and the one I found fits the bill except with the flame retardant issue. Blah.

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