What Is Really in Your Mattress?
This mattress cutaway shows how Boric Acid is used in mattresses. The layer at the surface is fluffy cotton batting treated with Boric Acid. The layer next to the springs is compressed cotton batting treated with Boric Acid. The law label tells us the mattress contains: 47% Urethane Foam, 39% Treated Cotton, 13% Polyester Fiber.
A new law is being enacted nationwide by the CPSC and went into effect in California January 1 2008, which requires all mattresses to resist ignition from open flames. The primary chemical used, as a flame retardant, is a poisonous pesticide called Boric Acid; yes exactly the same chemical shown in the picture above (H3BO3). Our recent science gives us many more warnings on human exposure. The EPA and CDC warn of Reproductive, Developmental, and Neurological Damage. It has many known health risks including, genital damage, brain damage, anemia, infertility, birth defects, and death, and at the very least may dry and irritate your skin and lungs.
This Poisonous chemical is going in our beds, not in some plastic part on your computer. Our Beds, where we sleep, are intimate, and lay our newborn babies with us. These chemicals are concentrated in the surface of our mattresses and absorb through our skin and breathing. Doctors agree long close exposure on a mattress eight hours every day increases risks.
This issue is urgent because these chemicals have already been added to many new mattresses nationwide. The law became effective January 1st, 2008 in California and probably within the next year for the entire United States. While Boric Acid is an ancient method to fireproof cloth, it is also a known poisonous pesticide/insecticide. When Roaches, Ants, and other insects walk through its dust it kills them and their entire colony within three weeks. It may be safe use to fireproof something like booth drapes at a convention. But this time they are putting a large amount of it in the surface of our mattresses!
Boric Acid is a poisonous pesticide: Effectively kills roaches, silverfish, ants, fleas, palmetto bugs and water bugs. Most people have the common sense not to put a pound or more in the surface of their mattress.
They have a saying in the pesticide industry: "There are no safe pesticides, only safe use." Respected Doctors agree: Boric Acid in the surface of mattresses is not safe use.
Most people have trouble believing industry and government are putting this poisonous chemical in our mattresses to make them fireproof, and think, they must use a different chemical or something else. No, it is exactly the same chemical as the pesticide (H3BO3). Check the mattress Law Tag; if it says "Treated Cotton" then it is likely Boron/Boric Acid.
How is this happening? It appears that industry and government have taken the attitude, "Well, we have been making cloth fireproof for years with Boric Acid and don't know of killing anyone yet." They consider it a good chemical because it can protect us from fire. Then they make the stretch that it is OK to concentrate a large amount of this chemical in the surface of our mattresses. Does the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) not know what another branch of our government is doing? The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) a division of the Center for Disease Control (CDC) cites Boron/Boric Acid as one of 275 substances "which pose the most significant potential threat to human health".
Perhaps the CPSC and industry are unaware there are a lot more new scientific discoveries in the last 30-years that prove and warn of the human exposure risks from Boric Acid. One mattress with this chemical claims: "Contains no harmful chemicals."
Video on the chemicals in synthetic mattresses:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0y0DTBntnw&feature=related
Questions to ask to find out if a mattress is all natural:
1. Are there any bonding or scrim in any of the battings?
2. Are there any Vanillin or scents added? Most Talalay has this..
3. Are there any silica agents added?
4. Is the rubber free of all benzene, toluene, and pthalates? Ask for test results.
5. Are the materials protected from growing to final product? Includes packaging.
6. Is the wool batting processed at an organic facility to prevent contamination?
Be careful that the organic mattress you buy does not have any polyester scrim, or fabric.
The Synthetic Problem
Synthetic mattresses contain harmful chemicals. Research has shown that the prolonged exposure to these chemicals can cause serious illness or cancer. Consider this: if you were to sleep on a synthetic mattress for eight hours a night for five years, that’d add up to over 14,600 hours of exposure time.
Below are some of the chemicals commonly used in synthetic mattresses, and the effects they can have.
Formaldehyde
Used in synthetic mattresses as an adhesive, formaldehyde has been linked to lung, throat, and nose cancers. Repeated exposure to formaldehyde can have serious effects on the respiratory system, cause asthma, and increase your likelihood of contracting bronchitis or pneumonia.
The National Cancer Institute (NCA) has conducted studies to determine the link between formaldehyde and an increased risk in cancer. Several NCA studies have determined that anatomists and embalmers (who are regularly exposed to formaldehyde in their work) have an increased risk of leukemia and brain cancer.
A study by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) looked at 11,039 textile workers, who had been exposed to formaldehyde. This study corresponded with the earlier NCA studies by finding a link between exposure to formaldehyde and Leukemia.
Polyurethanefoam
This is a petroleum-based material, which can cause respiratory problems and skin irritation. Polyurethanefoam is often used in mattresses for infant’s cribs, exposing babies to the harmful fumes they let off. An article in the Archives of Environmental Health expressed concern that the foam may be related to increasing incidents of childhood cancer.
A study on mice conducted at Anderson Laboratories in Vermont supported this theory. When the mice were exposed to the emissions from synthetic crib mattresses, their breathing was impeded. They experienced both heart and respiratory irritation, and some mice had severe, asthma-like reactions. The mice were only exposed to these fumes for two, one-hour periods. Imagine how sleeping every night on these mattresses affects children.
Fire Retardants
Manufacturers cover mattresses in fire retardants to counteract the flammability of their mattress chemicals. These fire retardant chemicals enter people’s systems, and as studies have shown, they can disrupt normal brain development in fetuses and infants. This is bad news, because flame retardants have been found in disturbingly high concentrations in people’s blood and breast milk. Mothers are passing these chemicals on to their children.
For example, CBS News reported on woman whose blood test revealed that she had 19 different flame retardant chemicals in her body. The same CBS article quoted an Environmental Protection Agency toxicologist, who was concerned about the effects fire retardants have on developing children.
The same toxicologist said research on young, developing animals has shown fire retardants affect their brains and reproductive systems. It is safe to say the same would be true for human infants.
The Organic Solution
There is hope, however. Organic mattresses provide an alternative to synthetic mattresses. An organic mattress is safe, chemical free, and composed of all natural materials. Usually, an organic mattress will be made of organic wool, organic cotton, or natural latex rubber. They are naturally flame resistant; there is no need to worry about them catching fire.
Aside from preventing exposure to harmful chemicals, organic mattresses also repel dust mites, resist mold and mildew buildup, and are hypoallergenic. Because these mattresses discourage mold and mildew, sleeping on an organic mattress can improve respiration, alleviate allergies, and provide a deeper, higher quality sleep.
This Poisonous chemical is going in our beds, not in some plastic part on your computer. Our Beds, where we sleep, are intimate, and lay our newborn babies with us. These chemicals are concentrated in the surface of our mattresses and absorb through our skin and breathing. Doctors agree long close exposure on a mattress eight hours every day increases risks.
This issue is urgent because these chemicals have already been added to many new mattresses nationwide. The law became effective January 1st, 2008 in California and probably within the next year for the entire United States. While Boric Acid is an ancient method to fireproof cloth, it is also a known poisonous pesticide/insecticide. When Roaches, Ants, and other insects walk through its dust it kills them and their entire colony within three weeks. It may be safe use to fireproof something like booth drapes at a convention. But this time they are putting a large amount of it in the surface of our mattresses!
Boric Acid is a poisonous pesticide: Effectively kills roaches, silverfish, ants, fleas, palmetto bugs and water bugs. Most people have the common sense not to put a pound or more in the surface of their mattress.
They have a saying in the pesticide industry: "There are no safe pesticides, only safe use." Respected Doctors agree: Boric Acid in the surface of mattresses is not safe use.
Most people have trouble believing industry and government are putting this poisonous chemical in our mattresses to make them fireproof, and think, they must use a different chemical or something else. No, it is exactly the same chemical as the pesticide (H3BO3). Check the mattress Law Tag; if it says "Treated Cotton" then it is likely Boron/Boric Acid.
How is this happening? It appears that industry and government have taken the attitude, "Well, we have been making cloth fireproof for years with Boric Acid and don't know of killing anyone yet." They consider it a good chemical because it can protect us from fire. Then they make the stretch that it is OK to concentrate a large amount of this chemical in the surface of our mattresses. Does the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) not know what another branch of our government is doing? The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) a division of the Center for Disease Control (CDC) cites Boron/Boric Acid as one of 275 substances "which pose the most significant potential threat to human health".
Perhaps the CPSC and industry are unaware there are a lot more new scientific discoveries in the last 30-years that prove and warn of the human exposure risks from Boric Acid. One mattress with this chemical claims: "Contains no harmful chemicals."
Video on the chemicals in synthetic mattresses:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0y0DTBntnw&feature=related
Questions to ask to find out if a mattress is all natural:
1. Are there any bonding or scrim in any of the battings?
2. Are there any Vanillin or scents added? Most Talalay has this..
3. Are there any silica agents added?
4. Is the rubber free of all benzene, toluene, and pthalates? Ask for test results.
5. Are the materials protected from growing to final product? Includes packaging.
6. Is the wool batting processed at an organic facility to prevent contamination?
Be careful that the organic mattress you buy does not have any polyester scrim, or fabric.
The Synthetic Problem
Synthetic mattresses contain harmful chemicals. Research has shown that the prolonged exposure to these chemicals can cause serious illness or cancer. Consider this: if you were to sleep on a synthetic mattress for eight hours a night for five years, that’d add up to over 14,600 hours of exposure time.
Below are some of the chemicals commonly used in synthetic mattresses, and the effects they can have.
Formaldehyde
Used in synthetic mattresses as an adhesive, formaldehyde has been linked to lung, throat, and nose cancers. Repeated exposure to formaldehyde can have serious effects on the respiratory system, cause asthma, and increase your likelihood of contracting bronchitis or pneumonia.
The National Cancer Institute (NCA) has conducted studies to determine the link between formaldehyde and an increased risk in cancer. Several NCA studies have determined that anatomists and embalmers (who are regularly exposed to formaldehyde in their work) have an increased risk of leukemia and brain cancer.
A study by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) looked at 11,039 textile workers, who had been exposed to formaldehyde. This study corresponded with the earlier NCA studies by finding a link between exposure to formaldehyde and Leukemia.
Polyurethanefoam
This is a petroleum-based material, which can cause respiratory problems and skin irritation. Polyurethanefoam is often used in mattresses for infant’s cribs, exposing babies to the harmful fumes they let off. An article in the Archives of Environmental Health expressed concern that the foam may be related to increasing incidents of childhood cancer.
A study on mice conducted at Anderson Laboratories in Vermont supported this theory. When the mice were exposed to the emissions from synthetic crib mattresses, their breathing was impeded. They experienced both heart and respiratory irritation, and some mice had severe, asthma-like reactions. The mice were only exposed to these fumes for two, one-hour periods. Imagine how sleeping every night on these mattresses affects children.
Fire Retardants
Manufacturers cover mattresses in fire retardants to counteract the flammability of their mattress chemicals. These fire retardant chemicals enter people’s systems, and as studies have shown, they can disrupt normal brain development in fetuses and infants. This is bad news, because flame retardants have been found in disturbingly high concentrations in people’s blood and breast milk. Mothers are passing these chemicals on to their children.
For example, CBS News reported on woman whose blood test revealed that she had 19 different flame retardant chemicals in her body. The same CBS article quoted an Environmental Protection Agency toxicologist, who was concerned about the effects fire retardants have on developing children.
The same toxicologist said research on young, developing animals has shown fire retardants affect their brains and reproductive systems. It is safe to say the same would be true for human infants.
The Organic Solution
There is hope, however. Organic mattresses provide an alternative to synthetic mattresses. An organic mattress is safe, chemical free, and composed of all natural materials. Usually, an organic mattress will be made of organic wool, organic cotton, or natural latex rubber. They are naturally flame resistant; there is no need to worry about them catching fire.
Aside from preventing exposure to harmful chemicals, organic mattresses also repel dust mites, resist mold and mildew buildup, and are hypoallergenic. Because these mattresses discourage mold and mildew, sleeping on an organic mattress can improve respiration, alleviate allergies, and provide a deeper, higher quality sleep.
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Chemical Soup!
Informational video about the dangerous chemicals sorrounding us in our clothes & household items. A must watch!
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Chemical Soup Ep. 2
Biophysical chemist Arlene Blum talks about the health hazards associated with exposure to toxic flame retardants.
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