On the home front: Is your furniture making you sick?
The moment we leave home, we subject ourselves to a bombardment of different hazards, chemicals and irritants. We can never be certain what we have come into contact with when we are in the office, driving or shopping. We wash our hands frequently and concern ourselves with the minutia of what we may have been exposed to in the workplace and other areas that we deem to be ‘high risk’ for harmful chemicals.
Don’t get us wrong, it’s good to be safe. But what if we told you that the most toxic environment is your own home? We have a false sense of safety for a number of reasons when it comes to the air quality and chemical exposure that we experience in our homes. Anything inside the house has naturally been purchased and stored by our own selves, and so we find it hard believe that we could be exposing ourselves to harmful chemicals every day of our life.
Whether we want to believe it or not, it’s true. The average home is literally full of toxic chemicals that create a variety of short and long term health effects. These are chemicals that are not suspected of being harmful, but known carcinogens that have been confirmed by research to cause health problems. No matter how clean your home is there is a veritable soup of chemicals brewing that are guaranteed to create significant health problems for you and your family.
We found a great infographic from the Environmental Defense Fund that outlines some of the secret places that toxic chemicals are residing in your home. While you may not be coming into direct contact with the toxins on a daily basis, they are present in things we use repeatedly in our home.
According to the Environmental Defense Fund, a high number of toxic chemicals are found in our home furnishings:
Perfluorinated Compounds (PFCs) are found in our clothing, cookware, food containers, and carpets. Perfluorooctanoic acid is used to make Teflon™ products and Scotchgard® on home furnishings.
Formaldehyde is used in carpeting, soaps and detergents, cabinetry and glues and adhesives in furnishings and other household accessories. It is frequently found in the ‘pressed wood’ manufactured products and is a known carcinogen according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)
Toulene is used in paints, furniture finishes, flooring and plumbing adhesives, and paint removers. This chemical is known to cause severe neurotoxic effects after long term exposure.
Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers are off gassed from furniture and electrical equipment (including televisions and computers).
Phthalates are present in wood varnishes and lacquers, paper, vinyl products and air fresheners.
Bisphenol is present in baby bottles, receipt paper, and in the linings of cans of food.
Are You Sitting On a Time Bomb?
How often do you replace your home furnishings? How long do you have a sofa or mattress in your home, before you shop for a new one? Home furnishings that are produced using chemicals are hazardous upon introduction to the home as well as over long term use, creating increased exposure to harmful toxins. As the materials in your furnishings begin to break down over time, they release chemical particulates that can leech into the fabric of any soft furnishing. If you have chosen a bed that is not organic, consider how many hours you are spending both breathing in toxic compounds as well as absorbing them through your skin while you sleep.
It’s a scary thought. The truth is that most consumers have an ingrained sense of denial when it comes to chemicals and their health. Many people feel that consumer inspection standards will prevent harmful materials from being used on household furnishings. The truth is that there is a loop hole that manufacturers use. The chemical cannot be harmful at the time that the article is sold. There are few provisions that hold manufacturers accountable for the amount of VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) that are released into the air after the article has been used for a period of time. As any furnishing ages, it begins to release some of the toxins used in its construction from wood glue, paint finishes and lacquers to the convenient stain protection coating that you pay extra for when you order your new sofa. Paying an extra fee for something that is going to have a negative impact on your health over time seems a little odd, but that’s exactly what is going on every time you bring a piece of inorganic furnishing into your home.
There is a new proliferation of eco-friendly and organic furniture options. Organic furniture sounded like something quite obscure as little as ten years ago, but with improved consumer education and awareness the demand for accurate identification and transparent manufacturing processes that will dramatically reduce (if not completely eliminate) the use of harmful carcinogens in home furnishings is growing. Inform yourself of every product you bring into your home and make a healthy choice when it comes investing in your long term health by purchasing organic home furnishings.