Toxic chemicals found in kids' car seats: study
August 3, 2011 in HealthMore than half of children's car seats sold in the United States contain hazardous chemicals, according to a study published Wednesday by a non-profit environmental group.
Sixty percent of 150 car seats tested by the Michigan-based Ecology Center were found to contain chemicals that can be harmful to human health such as bromine and chlorine, which points to the presence of polyvinyl chlorate (PVC).
Studies in lab animals have found that bromine-containing flame retardants can permanently affect the developing brain, while PVC has been classified by the US Environmental Protection Administration as a known human carcinogen.
When PVC is burned or dumped in landfills, dioxins -- highly toxic chemicals that build up in the food chain and can cause cancer, as well as harm the immune and reproductive systems -- are released into the air and water.
"Heat and UV-ray exposure in cars can accelerate the breakdown of these chemicals and possibly increase their toxicity," the Ecology Center said in a statement.
"Babies are the most vulnerable population in terms of exposure, since their bodily systems are still developing and they spend many hours in their car seats."
Ecology Center researchers compiled a list of the best and worst car seats in terms of the chemicals found in them, and posted it on the HealthyStuff.org website.
Levels of bromine varied between different models of the same make of car seat, with the source usually being a flame retardant used in the upholstery or cushioning, research team leader Jeff Gearhart told AFP.
The least toxic infant seats were Italian brand Chicco's KeyFit 30 in the Limonata color scheme, Graco Snugride 35 in Laguna Bay and Combi Shuttle 33 in Cranberry Noche.
Two Graco infant seats with different upholstery -- the Snugride 35 in Edgemont Red/Black and Snugride 30 in Asprey -- were meanwhile among the most toxic.
Using an x-ray fluorescence machine, which identifies the make-up of materials in less than 60 seconds, the Ecology Center has conducted more than 20,000 tests for toxic chemicals on some 7,000 consumer products since 1997.
(c) 2011 AFP
-
New car smell is bad for you
Apr 24, 2007 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Toxic chemicals found in a third of children's toys: study
Dec 02, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Potentially toxic flame retardants detected in baby products
May 18, 2011 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Kids safest in rear-facing car seats until age 2
Mar 21, 2011 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Study finds booster car seats not being used appropriately
May 11, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Of mice and mental models: Neuroscientific implications of risk-optimized behavior in the mouse
17 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
-
Limits to growth: Scientists identify key metastasis-enabling enzyme
May 22, 2012 |
5 / 5 (4) |
0
-
Seeing is as seeing does: Spatially-structured retinal input in early development of cortical maps
Apr 26, 2012 |
5 / 5 (4) |
1
-
Dreamless nights: Brain activity during nonrapid eye movement sleep
Apr 09, 2012 |
4.4 / 5 (12) |
0
-
Take your time: Neurobiology sheds light on the superiority of spaced vs. massed learning
Mar 28, 2012 |
4.5 / 5 (21) |
3
-
Classical and Quantum Mechanics via Lie algebras
Apr 15, 2011
- More from Physics Forums - Independent Research
More news stories
Most occupational injury and illness costs are paid by the government and private payers
UC Davis researchers have found that workers' compensation insurance is not used nearly as much as it should be to cover the nation's multi-billion dollar price tag for workplace illnesses and injuries. Instead, almost 80 ...
Health
8 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
Early physical therapist treatment associated with reduced risk of healthcare utilization and reduced overall healthcare
A new study published in Spine shows that early treatment by a physical therapist for low back pain (LBP), as compared to delayed treatment, was associated with reduced risk of subsequent healthcare utilization and lower ...
Health
11 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
|
Cancer patients share web info with docs for insight, advice
(HealthDay) -- Cancer patients' primary goal in talking with their doctors about information they've found on the Internet is to get more insight and advice on the online information, new research indicates.
Health
13 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
P&G to add latches to make detergent packs safer
(AP) -- Procter & Gamble says it will change the design of packaging for its miniature laundry detergent product to deter children from eating the brightly colored packets that look like candy.
Health
14 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
In Spain, 70 percent of women use contraceptives during their first sexual encounter
Contraceptive use in Spain during the first sexual encounter is similar to other European countries. However, there are some geographical differences between Spanish regions: women in Murcia use contraceptives ...
Health
15 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
Of mice and mental models: Neuroscientific implications of risk-optimized behavior in the mouse
(Medical Xpress) -- Regardless of an organism’s biological complexity, every encephalized animal continuously makes under-informed behavioral choices that can have serious consequences. Despite its ubiquity, ...
Tongue analysis software uses ancient Chinese medicine to warn of disease
For 5,000 years, the Chinese have used a system of medicine based on the flow and balance of positive and negative energies in the body. In this system, the appearance of the tongue is one of the measures used to classify ...
Cancer may require simpler genetic mutations than previously thought
Chromosomal deletions in DNA often involve just one of two gene copies inherited from either parent. But scientists haven't known how a deletion in one gene from one parent, called a "hemizygous" deletion, can contribute ...
Inherited DNA change explains overactive leukemia gene
A small inherited change in DNA is largely responsible for overactivating a gene linked to poor treatment response in people with acute leukemia.
Skp2 activates cancer-promoting, glucose-processing Akt
HER2 and its epidermal growth factor receptor cousins mobilize a specialized protein to activate a major player in cancer development and sugar metabolism, scientists report in the May 25 issue of Cell.
New device allows pacemaker patients to safely undergo MRIs
For many, it's a medical conundrum: The very pacemaker keeping their heart in rhythm prevents them from undergoing an MRI to diagnose other ailments, because interaction between the two devices could prove deadly.