Think twice before sitting down.
From household furniture to construction materials, flame retardants are added to fabrics and other materials to slow the spread of fire. Despite being in common use since the 1970s, health experts have long known about the toxic threats associated with many of these chemicals, including cancer and birth defects – and have eliminated certain varieties as a result.
However, a new study to be published in the August issue of Environmental International revealed that beloved broken sofas may be spreading harmful dust into your home at alarming levels, according to researchers at the Silent Spring Institute.
“These are real risks,” said Kathryn Rodgers, scientist and lead author. Studies have shown that these dangerous substances are associated with hormonal disorders, immunosuppression, some types of cancer and, most worrying, problems in fetal development and early childhood.
“When you look at some of those values, you say that this is just a little bit of dust. A drop in the bucket, ”she told Fast Company. But after many hours on the couch, she explained, “these exhibitions add up. They are every other day. And they are real. “
What should a nanny do? Discard that vintage – or second – hand sofa – and get a modern model, the researchers suggest.
“[They] it didn’t make sense from a fire safety point of view – because fires don’t start in the middle of your couch. “
Kathryn Rodgers, research author
Flame retardants became standard practice in 1975, after California – one of the largest furniture markets in the country, according to the Fast Company’s report – enacted a law that required the additive in the manufacture and import of furniture. Soon, the foam material used to create sofa cushions across the country was impregnated with the provision.
In the early 2000s, scientists began to recognize potential health risks, and in 2013, California revised its standard, making the use of retardants in the manufacture of furniture optional. In 2020, the federal government did the same, supporting California’s ambiguous stance – which means that some factories continue to use retardants, although they are increasingly preventable.
To find out how much damage old chemical-laden sofas are doing in American homes, researchers at the Silent Sprint Institute recruited 42 families who were willing to have their old upholstered seats replaced. Dust samples were collected from these houses before changing the sofa and again when the new seats arrived.
They found the initial samples packed with worrying concentrations of flame retardants, which are released into the interior each time a body hits the cushion.
But with a new couch and six months in between, toxic dust levels have dropped within a safe margin, the researchers found.
The findings suggest that sofas manufactured after 2014 contain significantly lower levels of these harmful chemicals, and consumers should buy seats produced after that date.
Also, be aware of the code “TB117-2013” on the furniture label, which indicates that the piece was made after California standards changed. In some cases, the description more definitively indicates whether the material contains flame retardants with a “yes” or “no” indicated as confirmation.
In the past, the American Chemical Council has stated that adding these chemicals to furniture has prevented about 360 deaths and 740 injuries each year. But the jury is up to Rodgers, who explained that better product design has made flame retardants almost obsolete.
“[They] it didn’t make sense from a fire safety point of view – because fires don’t start in the middle of the couch, ”she said.