CERCHFACTSHEETSeptember2012

FlameRetardants:Polybrominated
DiphenylEthers(PBDEs)

WhatarePBDEflameretardants?
Polybrominateddiphenylethers(PBDEs)areagroupofchemicalsusedtoreduce
theflammabilityofitemsinourhomes.Sincethe1970s,PDBEswereaddedto
textiles,foaminfurniture,carpetpadding,buildingmaterials,upholsteryincars
andairplanes,andplastichousingsforelectronics.MostPBDEsarenowbanned
fromuseintheseproducts,buthighlevelsofPBDEsarestillintheenvironment.
RecentevidencesuggestsPBDEexposuremayharmhumanhealth.Different
chemicals,includingoneidentifiedasacarcinogenbytheStateofCalifornia,are
nowusedasflameretardantsinsteadofPBDEs.
HowareweexposedtoPBDEs?
Asfurnitureandotherproductsgetoldandslowlybreakdown,flameretardantscangetintothesurrounding
environment,wheretheymayremainformanyyearsespeciallyindoors.PBDEshavebeenfoundaroundtheworldin
air,soil,dust,andfoodaswellasinwildlifeandhumans.DustcontainingPBDEparticlesisoneofthemainpathwaysfor
humanexposuretoPBDEs,especiallyforyoungchildrenwhoputtheirhandsortoysintheirmouthalot.
PBDEslastalongtime:theyaccumulateinfattytissuesinhumansandaredetectableinthebloodofalmostall
Americans.MostpeoplearoundtheworldhavesomePBDEsintheirbodies.Thehighesthumanlevelshavebeenfound
intheUnitedStates,especiallyCalifornia,comparedwithEuropeandAsia.
WhatarethehealtheffectsofPBDEs?
PBDEshavebeenlinkedtounhealthychangesinhormonesanddevelopmentinhumansandanimals.Inonestudy,
womenwithhigherexposurestooklongertogetpregnant,suggestingthatPBDEsmayaffectfertility.Wealsofoundthat
childrenofmotherswithhigherexposuresduringpregnancyhadpoorattention,motorcoordination,andIQwhenthey
reachedschoolage.PBDEshaveasimilarstructuretothyroidhormones,whichareveryimportantfornormalgrowthof
thebrainandnervoussystem.InterferingwiththyroidhormonesmaybeonewayPBDEscausehealthproblems.
ArechildrenatahigherrisktoPBDEs?
ChildrenhavebeenfoundtohavehigherlevelsofPBDEsintheirbodiesthanadults.Wethinkthisisbecausetheyplay
moreonthefloor,getPBDEcontaininghousedustontheirhands,andthenputtheirhandsintheirmouthswithout
washingthemfirst.Also,becausePBDEsconcentrateinbreastmilk,babiesareexposedwhennursing.PBDEflame
retardantswereaddedtomanyinfantproducts,suchasstrollers,representinganotherpotentialsourceofexposure.
Also,comparedwithadults,childreneat,drink,andbreathemorefortheirbodyweight,whichmayalsocontributeto
theirhigherlevelsofPBDEscomparedtoadults.ExposuretochemicalslikePBDEs,whenchildrensbrainsare
developing,suchasbeforetheyarebornandwhentheyareveryyoung,cancausemoreharmthanexposurestoadults,
whosenervoussystemsarealreadydeveloped.

WhyareexposureshigherinCalifornia?
Californianshavehigherexposuretoflameretardantsbecausethesechemicalsareusedto
meetCaliforniasuniquefurnitureflammabilitystandard,titledTechnicalBulletin117.The
Californiastandardrequiresfoaminsidefurnituretoresistanopenflamefor12seconds
withoutcatchingfire.CigarettesinCaliforniaandmanyotherstatesarenowrequiredtobe
madetogooutbythemselveswhentheyarenotbeingpuffed.Thus,cigarettes,the
maincauseoffirerelatedinjuriesinvolvingfurniture,arecausingfewerfiresthanthey
usedto.Overall,fireinjuriesanddeathshavebeendecreasingthroughouttheU.S.,
includingstateswhereflameretardantchemicalsarenotrequiredtobeused.These
statisticssuggestthatuseofchemicalflameretardantsinCaliforniaisnotnecessaryto
ensurefiresafety.
CERCHstudiesonPBDEexposureandhealthinSalinasValley
TheCenterfortheHealthAssessmentofMothersandChildrenofSalinas(CHAMACOS)studyfoundthathigherPBDE
exposuresduringpregnancywereassociatedwith:

Decreasedfemalefertility.(Gotopublication)
Alteredmaternalthyroidhormonelevelsduringpregnancy.(Gotopublication)
Lowerinfantbirthweight.(Gotopublication)
Butnotwithnewbornthyroidhormone.(Gotopublication)

Howcanyoupreventexposuretoflameretardants?
Thereareseveralwaysofreducingtheamountofflameretardantsthatyou
familycomeincontactwith:

Repairorreplacefurniture,mattresses,carupholsteryandchildrens
carseatsthathaveatorncoverorexposedfoam.Ifyoubuyused
furnitureandchildrensproducts,makesuretheyareingoodshape.
Thoroughlywashbothyourhandsandyourchildshands,especiallybeforepreparingfoodoreating.
Takeoffshoesbeforecomingindoorstoavoidtrackingchemicalsintothehome.
Useadampmopordustclothtocontrolhouseholddust.Ifyoucan,useavacuumwithaHEPAfilter.AHEPA
filtertrapsthesmallestpiecesofdustsotheydontgothroughthevacuumandintotheairwheretheycanget
intoyourbodywhenyoubreathe.
Openawindowregularlytoventilateyourhomewithfreshair.
Choosebabyproductsandfurniturethatcontainpolyester,down,woolorcottonwhicharelesslikelytocontain
flameretardantchemicalsoftenusedinfoam.

References:
BabrauskasV,BlumA,DaleyR,BirbaumL.Flameretardantsinfurniturefoam:Benefitsandrisks,pp.265278inFireSafetyScienceProc.10thIntl.Symp.,Intl.Assn.forFireSafetyScience,London(2011).
ChevrierJ,HarleyKG,BradmanA,GharbiM,SjdinA,EskenaziB.Polybrominateddiphenylether(PBDE)flameretardantsandthyroidhormoneduringpregnancy.EnvironHealthPerspect.2010;118(10):14449.
ChevrierJ,HarleyKG,BradmanA,SjdinA,EskenaziB.Prenatalexposuretopolybrominateddiphenylether(PBDE)flameretardantsandneonatalthyroidstimulatinghormonelevelsintheCHAMACOSstudy.AmJ
Epidemiol.2001;174(10):11661174
HarleyKG,ChevrierJ,SchallRA,SjdinA,BradmanA,EskenaziB.Associationofprenatalexposuretopolybrominateddiphenylethersandinfantbirthweight.AmJEpidemiol.2011;174(8):88592.
HarleyKG,MarksAR,ChevrierJ,BradmanA,SjdinA,EskenaziB.PBDEconcentrationsinwomensserumandfecundability.EnvironHealthPerspect.2010;118(5):699704.
HerbstmanJB,SjdinA,KurzonM,LedermanSA,JonesRS,RauhV,NeedhamLL,TangD,NiedzwieckiM,WangRY,PereraF.PrenatalexposuretoPBDEsandneurodevelopment.EnvironHealthPerspect.2010;118:712719.
MainKM,KivirantaH,VirtanenHE,etal.FlameretardantsinplacentaandbreastmilkandCryptorchidisminnewbornboys.EnvironHealthPerspect.2007;115:15191526.
SchreiberT,GassmannK,GotzC,et.al.Polybrominateddiphenylethersinducedevelopmentalneurotoxicityinahumaninvitromodel:Evidenceforendocrinedisruption.EnvironHealthPerspect.2010;118:572578.
ShawSD,BlumA,WeberR,etal.Halogenatedflameretardants:dothefiresafetybenefitsjustifytherisks?ReviewsonEnvironmentalHealth.2010;25(4):261305.
TechincalBulletin117Requirements,TestProcedureandApparatusforTestingtheFlameRetardanceofResilientFilingMaterialsUsedinUpholsteredFurniture,StateofCalifornia,BureauofHomeFurnishingsand
ThermalInsulation,WestHighlandsCA.2000.