We place our children in car seats to keep them safe, yet these very car seats may be full of toxic chemicals that could make our children sick. A new report from the Ecology Center was released on Wednesday. "Car seats save lives. It’s absolutely essential that parents put their children in them while driving," said Jeff Gearhart, the Ecology Center's Clean Car Campaign Director. "However, some car seats are safer than others when it comes to chemical composition. Healthycar.org makes it easy ... continue reading...
Search Results for: CPSC
Who Is the Consumer Product Safety Commission?
With the news of lead in lunchbags and bpa risks in baby bottles and sippy cups, I have been wondering who and what the Consumer Product Saftey Commission (CPSC) is. The CPSC is an "independent" agency of the US federal government, meaning it does not exist within any department in the Executive branch; however, the president appoints commissioners. The Commission is normally made up of three commissioners, but one seat has been vacant since July 2006. My friend Tim alerted me to the issue ... continue reading...
Lead in Lunchboxes-Part 2
The Center for Environmental Health (CEH) is a great source for information on lead in lunchboxes. In answer to the question "How dangerous are lunchboxes with lead?", CEH replies, "The levels CEH found in lunchboxes are not high enough by themselves to cause acute lead poisoning during normal use. However, wth prolonged use or if you child is exposed to lead from other sources, a leaded lunchbox would add to their health risk. Because lead has been shown to cause developmental problem in ... continue reading...
More Lead Hazards: Lunchboxes
I just received an email from the Sierra Club with a quote about lead in lunchboxes that caught my attention: "When it comes to a lunchbox, it's carried. The food that you put in the lunch box may have an outer wrapping, a baggie, so there isn't direct exposure. The direct exposure would be if kids were putting their lunchboxes in their mouth, which isn't a common way for children to interact with their lunchbox," said CPSC spokeswoman Julie Vallese." What...lead in lunchboxes? I assumed that ... continue reading...
Naturally Resistant Sleepwear?
Garnet Hill has just announced naturally flame-resistant sleepwear. According to product descriptions, these pajamas are made of "55% modacrylic/45% cotton blend that is naturally flame resistant without the use of chemicals." According to Wikipedia, "Modacrylic fibers, first produced in the United States in 1949, are modified acrylic fibers made from acrylonitriles." Modacrylic is flame-resistant; however, it is a synthetic fiber. Therefore, I do not feel Garnet Hill's new line of sleepwear ... continue reading...