New Study Shows Pregnant California Women Have High Levels Of Flame Retardant In Their Blood
A new study at UC San Francisco released on Wednesday states that pregnant California women have registered "some of the highest levels of the toxic flame retardant PBDE in their bodies ever recorded worldwide," reports LA Times.
Testing 25 pregnant women from Northern and Central California in their second-trimesters in 2008 and 2009, the research team discovered that their blood showed high levels of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). These chemicals are harmful to the liver, thyroid and nerve development and have been banned in California since 2004.
Researchers believe the high levels are due to California's strict flammability regulations enacted in the 1970s which permitted manufacturers to add flame retardants to a bevvy of products.
Ami Zota, the study's lead author, believes that U.S. native minority and low-income women were possibly more likely to have been exposed to the chemicals from using secondhand furniture or residing in poorly ventilated low-income housing.
"What we've seen is if people are born outside of the U.S., like in Mexico, and migrate to the U.S., their exposures are already lower. The theory is Mexico used less of these chemicals so an immigrant's exposure in Mexico was lower than when they were in California," Zota said.
Women can try reducing their exposure by doing the following actions.
*Dust and wet-mop their homes.*Wash their hands frequently.
*Avoid foam furniture and other products.
Limiting exposure, however, is a challenge.
"Ultimately, it's very hard to avoid our exposures to these products because they're so widespread," Zota said. "We need policy measures."
The study did not include SoCal women, which leaves us wondering about PBDE levels in our pregnant ladies.
