Flame Retardants: the Asbestos of Our Time?

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(Pictured on right: My grandfather, Diego Batista Martinez, on one of his beloved ships. He died of Mesothelioma in April 2005 after years of exposure to asbestos in the shipyards.)



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"I am always careful to protect my son," Holly S. Lohuis, a marine biologist whose son had been biomonitored for toxic chemicals, said in a released statement. "I am heartbroken that at age four his levels of flame retardants are like those of an industrial worker."


This is disturbing as animal studies have linked flame retardants to cancer, neurological and reproductive disorders. The flame retardants easily leach onto dust, pet hair, and the crumbling foam of old products -- surely, I am not the only one who used second-hand baby products! -- making them easy to ingest by children.

What irks me most is these companies have managed to turn it around, claim their "fire safe" products are superior and even worth paying for. What they don't display is the hidden cost for our children, our babies, in terms of their health.

Also, most fire victims -- as many as 80% -- die due to smoke inhalation rather than the actual flames. So why don't we take a deep breath -- a deep breath of fresh air that is -- and take care of our lungs and that of our children. After witnessing our family’s exposure to the fire-fighting chemical, asbestos, I, for one, do not want to find out the longterm effect of toxic flame retardants in my children's bodies.

Elisa Batista, who co-publishes the MotherTalkers blog, is also a proud contributor to the MomsRising and Moms Clean Air Force blogs. She dedicates this post to her late abuelo, Diego Batista Martinez.