The average person spends about one-third of her life in bed. The problem: Most conventional mattresses contain brominated flame retardants, also known as polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDEs (mostly banned in Europe since 2004, as well as in some states). “We’re just beginning to get worried about PBDEs,” says Philip J. Landrigan, MD, chairman of the Department of Community and Preventive Medicine and professor of pediatrics at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City.
PBDEs are structurally similar to the polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) that were banned in the 1970s in the United States because they were found to be persistent in the environment and the human body, says David O. Carpenter, MD, director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at the University at Albany, State University of New York. “PBDEs appear to do almost everything PCBs do, including cause cancer and interfere with immune-system function,” he adds. Medical experts are currently investigating PBDEs and their possible links to cancer, immune and thyroid suppression, and IQ reduction in children. A 2003 study published in Environmental Health Perspectives found that women in Texas had breast milk with PBDE levels 10 to 100 times higher than those of women in Europe. “PBDEs affect almost every organ in the body, and levels are rising exponentially in blood and breast milk,” Carpenter notes. “You can be pretty sure that if they’re in breast milk, they’re going to be in kids’ bodies.”
Mattresses may also contain formaldehyde (which the U.S. National Toxicology Program calls a probable carcinogen) and benzene (classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as a carcinogen). Luckily, there are less-toxic alternatives. Consider an organic mattress (a queen can set you back a few thousand bucks); get more info at www.thecleanbedroom.com or www.theorganicmattressstore.com. For a comparatively cheaper option, choose an organic-cotton or wool futon. Wool, unlike petroleum-based chemicals such as polyurethane foam (found in many mattresses), acts as a natural flame retardant. If your futon has no wool in it, find out how the manufacturer meets flammability standards; it may use boric acid. If buying conventional, avoid vinyl covers and stain-resistant treatments, as both will release possibly carcinogenic and hormone-disrupting chemicals into your lungs while you slumber. Natural is a must for crib mattresses because babies sleep up to 18 hours a day and have more-vulnerable systems.
By Alexandra Zissu
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Comments (19)
Please stop scaring people for no reason. Just let it be. There is always going to be something bad around us, but how would we live a good life if we have to worry about stuff like this. Give it a rest, please!!!!!
Thank you for the truth, if some people chose to stay ignorant to the toxic chemical that manufacturer have been using for years… Maybe they shouldn’t read articles about the subject!
The fact is, NO consumer can do the research necessary for every product we use. Notice that European countries are ALWAYS far ahead of us in government protection. The U.S. has always defered public safety to private profit, and the result is lower IQs, rampant asthma, reduced sperm counts, and increasing incidence of cancer. Wool is not an answer, because many people are allergic to it, and it is treated with chemicals (at least in the US) that are untested and likely harmful. All citizens required extensive government-required testing of all materials. Much as I dislike government intervention, there is simply no way private industry will take responsibility. Just look at the thousands of deaths resulting from the recent weakening of the FDA due to poorly-tested drugs like Lipitor.
“Please stop scaring people for no reason. Just let it be.”
What an ignorant statement. Yes, there are omnipresent dangers but we should do what we can to mitigate known chemical risks. Do you think the drastic increase in cancer in this country has no correlation to the rampant use of untested chemicals, or worse, those with known dangerous side effects? Please, Cauthen get your head out of the sand.
Thank you for the information, it’s very helpful. But with 1/3 of people unemployed and as you stated in your article that a queen size organic mattress could cost you a few thousand bucks, most won’t be able to afford it. In theory going organic sound great, but if you’re living pay check to pay check going organic is the last thing on your mind. If you want to help give tips on afforable items the everyday adverage person can purchase.
you really need to get a life, this is too much.
Amen Liv.
I have fibro and other conditions and lost a child to CF in 1982. I always considerd myself informed. Now I will do my own investigations and read ALL of the info you provide. Thanks. For those who don’t want to knowm go stick your head into the sand….but oh, is that safe?
I agree with Paul when he states, “Much as I dislike government intervention, there is simply no way private industry will take responsibility”. There has to be reasons why cancer is so increasingly rampant in the US. We should at least as consumers be as informed as possible as to what harmful substances are out there. And while I cannot afford everything organic at this moment, I am thankful to continually research the healthiest options and when it is time for me to purchase things like a matress, I will be well on my way to make the best natural decision for me. Thanks for the information!
Wash your hands in hot soapy guys, PLEASE.
Wash your sheets once a week in hot water.
Bleach is OK.
Don’t worry or fret so much.
If you are a complete worry-stay awake all night kind of freak, ask your doctor about some Xanax, the chill pill, it wont hurt you at all.
Enjoy the free comedy on TV and laugh, turn that other crap off. Pump some tunes into your ears and chill, yes, we have bugs and germs all over us, get a grip on what is good, it’s only life after all. Be happy. Do a little dance. Get down tonight.
I can’t believe that people cannot share information on a website without all these nasty remarks. The website is called HEALTH. If you nasty people that are calling others anxiety ridden don’t care about your health, then why are you on the site? As a well educated Registered Nurse in NY for the past 15 years I think it is great that people are taking a closer look at the things in their home, examining the foods they eat and questioning what kind of pollutants are in their environment. Long Island’s children are being treated for autism and other related diseases at epidemic proportions… men here are dying of heart attacks in their 30’s…mothers of small children are getting cancers here that are typically found in the elderly and factory workers exposed to hazards. That is not paranoia these are the facts and I KNOW because I see it everyday. If people want to write about topics that can educate others and there are people out there who want to read what they write, that is their right. Just because people are interested in buying a mattress made with less toxins, or returning toys with lead to their manufacturers DOES NOT mean they need to go on Xanax!!
I like to be informed, for those of you that don’t, don’t read! I have to children with Cystic Fibrosis and I suffer from Sjorgren’s disease. I need to know these things for the health of me and my children more importantly. I know the generations before us used these things and they were okay, but they also were not faced with poor soil, poor food, mad cow, mercury in their fish, Bird flu, rampant cancer, millions of “stuff” in their drinking water and the list goes on and on. We are being bombarded with lies and information held back by the government. It is refreshing for someone to care enough to write an article such as this and I value it!!
I am having issues with my neck and spine. I have a numbers bed (sucks) and it is not helping. I used to have a FIRm mattress until it sagged. I try putting pillow here or there. I excercise, stretch, and I still hurt. LAst night I went to the floor with a cushy thing so the floor would not hurt. I hurt!
Should I go back to a firm Mattress. Opinins please
Willi
I wonder if a mattress cover helps as a barrier to these chemicals?
Please let us know about other mattresses: tempurpedic, select comfort
As I see it – Be informed, but be realistic. Make changes, but start small. Don’t be overcome with paranoia and worry. That’s just as bad for your health (if not worse) as a mainstream mattress.
Folks, I hate to break it to you, but everyone is going to die someday of something. More people are dying of cancer because they didn’t die at earlier ages of childhood diseases, malnutrition, influenza, agricultural and industrial accidents and war, like they used to. Indoor air quality is far better now than when our ancestors heated their homes with coal or wood furnaces, which is a good thing, because our homes are now so airtight (as required by government building standards) that very little fresh air gets in.
If you are going to spend “a few thousand dollars” on something for your health, you’d be better off spending it on a heavier more crashworthy car, a defensive driving class and a little higher heat bill from cracking a window now and then, than spending it on an “organic” mattress. Oh, and floss every day.
For those of you who are skeptical, when we eliminated the chemicals we could from our home and food (including petroleum based preservatives,FD&C colors, artificial flavors and sweeteners as part of the Feingold diet), our son’s ADHD symptoms were greatly reduced and my painful arthritis symptoms went away. It gave us “a new lease on life.” How do you put a price on that? So it’s not just avoiding cancer risk. It’s about the quality of your whole life. And for some I know with ADHD or autistic children who have been helped in the same way, it saved their marriage. (Willi – I had neck and spine issues too. Not anymore.)
Best step for safety: NEVER, NEVER allow anyone to smoke around you or anyone else, indoors or out. Toxic tobacco smoke kills 65,000 INNOCENT Americans every year. Even the residue and stench on smokers when they aren’t smoking is dangerous. Smoking and tobacco should be banned.