Chemicals from flame retardants commonly found in furniture, televisions and even children’s pajamas have been found in toddlers’ blood, prompting activists to call for more federal regulations.
“These aren’t chemicals you can hide on a top shelf,” said Kristi Horvath, spokeswoman for Maryland Public Interest Research Group, an advocacy group.
Children ages 1 to 4 typically had three times more of the neurotoxins known as PBDEs — polybrominated diphenyl ethers — in their blood as their mothers, according to a study released Thursday by Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit based in Washington, D.C. that advocates to protect public health and the environment.
Tests found concentrations of 11 flame retardants in 19 out of 20 U.S. families tested, and 86 percent of the time, the concentrations were higher in the children than their mothers, according to the study.
“These are significant levels of exposure,” Brenda Afzal, director of health programs at the University of Maryland School of Nursing, said at a news conference at a Rodgers Forge house announcing the study.
Studies have shown that PBDEs, used in electronics, furniture and some clothing, are endocrine disrupters, which block hormones and disrupt the body’s normal functions, and neurotoxins, which target nerve cells, Afzal said.
The chemicals won’t show specific effects in children, but they are one of a host of chemicals to which children are exposed, she said.
PBDEs are often not bonded to the materials, so they can leach into dust. Children are more vulnerable because they are crawling on the floor and putting objects in their mouths, Horvath said.
“Even from the earliest age, they are being exposed,” she said.
Beginning next month, two forms of PBDEs known as Penta- and Octa- are banned in Maryland.
A ban on Deca-PBDEs, the most widely used form and the only one still made in the United States, failed this past year.
The bill’s sponsor, Del. Jim Hubbard, D-Prince George’s, has said he will reintroduce the legislation next session.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has been studying the health effects and pathways of exposure, said Dr. Linda Birnbaum, EPA’s senior toxicologist, who has studied PBDE levels in cats.
The findings released Thursday are a “red flag, but not a cause to panic,” she said, adding parents should vacuum and dust regularly to keep down dust levels.
Afzal said the federal laws that regulate chemicals need to be reformed.
“We assume innocence of these chemicals. We have to stop that,” she said.
PBDEs are banned in Europe, and some electronics companies have phased out PBDEs in favor of less-toxic flame retardants, Horvath said.
Clothing manufacturers also can opt for fabrics that are flame resistant and don’t need the added chemicals, she said.
Kate Canada, who hosted the news conference, said she has started taking stock of her 16-month-old daughter Lily’s clothes and furniture. She said she plans to buy pajamas that don’t contain the chemicals.
“I try to keep toxic chemicals away from my children,” Canada said.
“But it’s becoming harder and harder when chemicals are appearing in everything.”
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