A Recent Study Found That A Mom's Exposure To Flame Retardant Chemicals Is Linked To Babies With Lower Birth Weight. For Each Tenfold Increase In A Mom's Blood Levels Of Flame Retardants, Her Baby Was Born Weighing 4.1 Ounces Less.
A recent study found that a mom's exposure to flame retardant chemicals is linked to babies with lower birth weight. For each tenfold increase in a mom's blood levels of flame retardants, her baby was born weighing 4.1 ounces less.
A recent study led by University of California, Berkeley's School of Public Health researchers and published in the American Journal of Epidemiology found that a mom's exposure to flame retardant chemicals is linked to babies with lower birth weight. For each tenfold increase of flame retardants in a mom's blood levels , her baby was born weighing 4.1 ounces less. "This is the first, large population-based study to link PBDEs with babies' birth outcomes," said Kim Harley, adjunct assistant professor of maternal and child health and associate director of the Center for Environmental Research and Children's Health (CERCH) at UC Berkeley and lead author of the study. "A 115-gram decrease in weight is a fairly significant finding. By way of comparison, consider that smoking during pregnancy is associated with about a 150- to 250-gram decrease in birthweight." (Source: ScienceDaily) However, most of the babies in the study were still born at a healthy weight and were not underweight. In fact, not many of the babies were born under 5.5 pounds. Nonetheless, for babies at risk of having low birth weight, a mom's exposure to the chemicals could make a difference. The flame retardant chemicals examined in the study, PBDEs, are no longer used in products and were phased out in 2004. However, older furniture and carpet may contain them. They were commonly found in carpet, foam furniture and baby products. California has high flame retardant standards, which means that the levels of the chemical in household dust in California can be eight times higher than in other states. For the complete study and to read other information on flame retardants, visit Science Daily. More on chemicals Car seats and toxic chemicals Study: Chemicals found in pregnant women Toxic flame retardant chemicals found in over 1,000 baby products