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Posts tagged: Health

MICROFIBER POLLUTION & THE APPAREL INDUSTRY - Assessing the impacts of microfiber pollution in the environment

[brenmicroplastics.weebly.com] "Millions of metric tons of plastic are produced and discarded annually, much of which ends up accumulating in the marine environment. Multiple studies have shown widespread pollution on the surfaces of the oceans and within the water column, where small fragments and fibers are ingested by marine organisms. The...

Great Lakes teeming with tiny plastic fibers, scientists say

[chicagotribune.com] "Scientists who have reported that the Great Lakes are awash in tiny bits of plastic are raising new alarms about a little-noticed form of the debris turning up in sampling nets: synthetic fibers from garments, cleaning cloths and other consumer products.They are known as "microfibers" — exceedingly fine filaments...

How your clothes are poisoning our oceans and food supply

[theguardian.com] "Synthetic microfibers are particularly dangerous because they have the potential to poison the food chain. The fibers’ size also allows them to be readily consumed by fish and other wildlife. These plastic fibers have the potential to bioaccumulate, concentrating toxins in the bodies of larger animals, higher up the...

Are We Eating Our Fleece Jackets? Microfibers Are Migrating Into Field And Food

[npr.org] "Peer-reviewed studies have shown that these synthetic microfibers — a type of plastic smaller than a millimeter in length and made up of various synthetic polymers — have popped up in table salt in China, in arctic waters and in fish caught off the coast of California. These tiny fibers make up 85...

The big fashion fight: can we remove all the toxic, invisible plastic from our clothes?

[theguardian.com] "And plastic clothing can be uniquely toxic, even while it is still in use or after it has been recycled. A 2016 study by the University of California at Santa Barbara found that, on average, polyester fleece jackets release 1.7 grams of plastic microfibres each time they go into the wash....

Your furniture may contain harmful chemicals

[Medicalnewstoday.com] "New research finds that children living in homes with vinyl flooring or sofas that contain flame retardants have traces of potentially harmful toxins in their urine or blood. An increasing number of studies are shedding light on the surprisingly pervasive sources of chemicals that may harm human health."

What do you think of memory foam mattresses and toppers? Are they safe?

[Greenhomeguide.com] "Memory foam is, simply put, foam made from polyurethane. Also called visco-elastic polyurethane foam, memory foam poses various health and environmental concerns: Petroleum. Polyurethane is synthetic and is made from petroleum products. Therefore, its production furthers our dependency on fossil fuel resources. The production of synthetics from petroleum products is energy-intensive...

Is a Polyurethane Foam Mattress Pad Safe for Babies?

[Hunker.com] "Polyurethane foam is a highly flammable material. This means that the final product must be again treated with chemicals in order to make it fire retardant. These chemicals have been linked to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), according to New Zealand scientist and chemist Dr. Jim Sprott and as reported...

Hand-Me-Down Hazard: Flame Retardants in Discarded Foam Products

[ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] "Hundreds of millions of padded items containing flame retardants are currently in use in the United States, estimates Arlene Blum of the Green Science Policy Institute. That estimate doesn’t include the many hundreds of millions more items already in landfills. Blum and her organization spent eight years campaigning for...

Detox Your Sleep

[HuffPost.com] "Polyurethane foam, also appearing as "memory foam" or "soy foam," is made with a potentially cancer-causing chemical, and may emit VOCs. VOCs can also be found in synthetic latex foam, which can irritate eyes, nose and throat, cause headaches and are linked to cancer. Padding: Polyester is often used...

Is Polyurethane Foam A Dreamy Comfort Or Toxic Nightmare?

[Greenfuture.io] "Polyurethane is made when methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) and toluene diisocyanate (TDI) react with polyols. MDI and TDI both need to be handled carefully during the manufacturing process. In particular, TDI is a suspected carcinogenic, is classified as very toxic, and is a known respiratory and skin irritant. The National...

The Complete Guide to Toxic Chemicals in Mattresses

[Leafscore.com] "In times gone by, mattresses were stuffed with feathers, horsehair, wool, and cotton batting, as well as other natural materials. With the introduction of synthetics, everything changed, and not exactly for the better. Now, most mattresses are made with a mix of polyurethane foam, synthetic latex, and conventional cotton,...

7 Types of Plastic Wreaking Havoc on Our Health

[Ecowatch.com] "Aside from the devastating impact on the planet's health, plastic's impact on human health has been insidious. Decade after decade we have watched as prostate and breast cancer rates have risen, fertility rates in men have dropped, young girls have entered early puberty, young boys have become increasingly hyperactive...

Urethane Foam Health Effects

[Livestrong.com] "Urethane foam is everywhere — it's under your carpet, in your furniture and your bed, in your walls, on the soles of your shoes and in your athletic helmet. Prolonged exposure to petroleum-based chemicals in products like urethane foam may affect the nervous and immune system and cause illnesses including...