Toxicity Analysis of Baby Mattresses:
Stealth Poisoning in Our Children's Cribs

by: Barry A. Cik, PE, CP, DEE, QEP, REM, CHMM*
Chief Engineer, G.E.M. Testing & Engineering Labs

PART III: A HEALTHIER APPROACH

H. Protecting Our Children

Children are far more vulnerable to toxic chemicals than adults, especially within their first few years. NaturePedic recognizes this increased sensitivity and has developed a suite of products to help protect our children.

The National Academy of Sciences describes four factors that may contribute to children's unique vulnerability to the harmful effects of chemicals.

• Children's exposures are greater pound-for-pound than those of adults
• Children are less able than adults to detoxify and excrete chemicals
• Children's developing organ systems are more vulnerable to damage from chemical exposure
• Children have more years of future life in which to develop disease triggered by early exposure

The EPA and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry recognize that children differ from adults in their susceptibility to hazardous chemicals, including carcinogens and the neuro-developmental effects of the fire retardants commonly used in baby mattresses.

"Children are not small adults. They differ from adults in their exposures and may differ in their susceptibility to hazardous chemicals... "
(Toxicological Profile for Polybrominated Biphenyls and Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBB's and PBDE's), Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Section 5.7, September 2004, www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp68-c5.pdf)

"... EPA has determined that infants up to age two are, on average, ten times more vulnerable to carcinogenic chemicals than adults, and for some cancer causing agents are up to 65 times more vulnerable... children accumulate up to 50 percent of their lifetime cancer risk by their second birthday... many chemicals linked to mutagenic activity are commonly used in consumer products and can contribute to children's exposure to carcinogens.
(Children's Health Policy Review, EPA Cancer Policy Revisions Highlight Risks to Children, Environmental Working Group, March 3, 2003, www.ewg.org/issues/risk_assessment/20030303/index.php)

Many doctors have become concerned with the toxicity issues of various products, including baby mattresses, particularly regarding the possible effects of these chemicals on our children. Many of these chemicals have already been implicated in various childhood disorders.

"We have come to understand that chemicals in the environment can cause a wide range of developmental disabilities in children... In the words of pediatrician Herbert L. Needleman, ‘We are conducting a vast toxicologic experiment in our society, in which our children and our children's children are the experimental subjects."
(The Developing Brain and the Environment: An Introduction, Bernard Weiss MD, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, and Philip J. Landrigan MD, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, Environmental Health Perspectives, Volume 107 Supplement 3, June 2000)

It is becoming increasingly clear that toxic chemicals are affecting our children. A primary source of toxic chemicals in the environment of a child during its first few years of life is the mattress and sleeping environment. Removing potentially harmful chemicals from these prominent objects represents a prudent, but wise, approach for concerned parents and their doctors.

"We are particularly ignorant about the causes of the major pediatric diseases, which in the United States today are principally chronic rather than infectious. These chronic diseases include asthma, which has doubled since 1980; birth defects, which remain the leading cause of infant death; developmental disorders, such as attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism; and childhood leukemia and brain cancer, which have increased in incidence since the 1970s."
(A National Prospective Cohort Study of American Children, Philip J. Landrigan MD, M.Sc., Pediatrician, Chair of the Department of Community and Preventive Medicine, Health, Director of the Center for Children's Health and the Environment at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, www.childenvironment.org/factsheets/longitudinal_study.htm)

I. The NaturePedic® Design

G.E.M Testing & Engineering Labs, on behalf of NaturePedic, developed and designed the No-Compromise^TM Baby Mattress to address the concerns of parents and doctors as presented in this report. The NaturePedic No-Compromise Baby Mattress has been designed in accordance with the following paramaters:

• NATURAL MATERIALS: The No-Compromise Baby Mattress utilizes organic cotton, a natural material with favorable qualities and an extensive history in mattresses and similar products. In particular, organic cotton has low toxicity concerns. Cotton provides for good air circulation while maintaining more even humidity and balanced temperatures. It has the ideal density for firm yet comfortable bedding.

• NON-TOXIC DESIGN: The design of the No-Compromise Baby Mattress strives to eliminate materials which may be toxic, hazardous, or otherwise potentially harmful, as is reasonably achievable.

The following are specifically prohibited:

NO Phthalates
NO Vinyl (Polyvinyl Chloride or PVC)
NO Polyurethane Foam
NO dangerous Fire Retardant Chemicals (PBDE's, Antimony, Modacrylic, etc.)
NO Scrap or Pig Hair Fiber Pads

• FIRE PROTECTION: The No-Compromise Baby Mattress is designed to meet and exceed Federal and State Flammability Standards, and exceed such standards by the highest possible margin reasonably achievable. Cotton naturally has a low rate of combustion and does not burst into flames when ignited as compared with polyurethane foam and PVC, eliminating the need for harsh industrial fire retardant chemicals. To maximize fire protection, Naturepedic's non-toxic fire barrier system based on baking soda's unique fire retardant properties has been developed.

• FIRM SUPPORT: The No-Compromise Baby Mattress uses extra firm high coil count orthopedic innersprings, providing the optimum pediatrician recommended firmness and comfort levels. The design also features heavy-duty border rods for extra side and edge support.

More information on the NaturePedic Crib Mattress

J. Credentials

G.E.M. Testing & Engineering Labs has expertise in environmental assessments, materials & toxicology, and related specialties. Services are provided per EPA, ASTM and other professional protocols. G.E.M. Testing & Engineering Labs is licensed by the State of Ohio, and has been providing professional environmental engineering services since 1984.

BARRY A. CIK, PE, CP, DEE, QEP, CHMM, REM
Chief Engineer, G.E.M. Testing & Engineering Labs, Cleveland, Ohio

G.E.M. Testing & Engineering Labs:
Website: www.gemtesting.com

 Back to Table of Contents