Inhabitots | Your guide to green parenting, eco baby & green kids

New Research Suggests Flame Retardants May Create Deadlier Fires

by Jennifer Chait, 04/18/12 filed under: green family, health & body, news, toxins

You may have already heard that flame retardants are toxic, yet companies continue to add them to baby car seats, kids clothing, baby mattresses and even our food. Now in an ironic twist, researchers have found that brominated and chlorinated flame retardants which are routinely added to upholstered furniture and other household items to stop the spread of flames, actually increase emissions of two poisonous gases. Basically by making a product flame retardant via chemicals, companies may actually be making fire even more deadly. Study co-author Anna Stec, a fire specialist at the University of Central Lancashire in the United Kingdom, said in a statement, “We found that flame retardants have the undesirable effect of increasing the amounts of carbon monoxide and hydrogen cyanide released during combustion.” Also important to note is that carbon monoxide and hydrogen cyanide are by far the biggest killer in fires – they’re responsible for 60 to 80% of all fire deaths, according to the National Fire Protection Association.
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Top 6 Children’s Books for Earth Day

by Michelle Lloyd, 04/18/12 filed under: books, eco toddler, green family, green kids

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5 Ways the U.S. Government is Failing Your Family and the Planet

by Jennifer Chait, 04/18/12 filed under: eco toddler, green family, green kids, health & body, kids health, news, toxins

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New Test May Help Fight Common Parasite Toxoplasma Linked to Severe Illness in Newborns

by Jennifer Chait, 04/18/12 filed under: green pregnancy, health & body, news

It’s common knowledge that various strains of Toxoplasma gondii parasite, the cause of toxoplasmosis, are associated with health problems for pregnant women and babies, and this is why expectant moms are warned not to change kitty litter. However, until now, researchers haven’t been able to figure out which strains may cause the most damage to developing babies. Recently though, researchers have used a new blood test developed by scientists at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, to pinpoint which T. gondii strains children are most likely to acquire from their infected mothers while in the womb. Researchers have also been able to link these common strains to which are most strongly associated with premature births and severe birth defects in the United States. Currently a simple blood tests can determine whether a person is infected with any strain of Toxoplasma parasite. This new experimental test developed at NIAID is much better though, because it detect the presence of strain-specific antibodies, meaning more effective treatments may be planned.
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Common Pesticides Linked to Low Birth Weight and Premature Births

by Jennifer Chait, 04/17/12 filed under: green pregnancy, health & body, news, toxins

A new study reinforces news we’ve heard before. First of all pesticides cause problems for pregnant women and their babies. Secondly, pregnant women are carrying pesticides in abundance in their bodies. Lead researcher Bruce Lanphear MD, MPH, and his colleagues tracked a group of more than 300 expectant mothers from the Cincinnati area. The group of women was intentionally designed to be ethnically and economically diverse. The plan was to compare prenatal insecticide exposure to gestational age and birth weight. The researchers got some interesting results. Overall, babies born to women with the highest levels of organophosphates (pesticides, such as those found in weed killer and food) in their urine samples, were born about half a week earlier and weighed one-third of a pound less than those of women with the lowest pesticide exposures. Oddly, the effects varied by race, ethnicity and paroxanase (PON1) genotypes – paraoxonases are enzymes involved in the hydrolysis of organophosphates.

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7 Earth Day Inspired Goodies from Etsy

by Jennifer Chait, 04/17/12 filed under: green design, green gifts, green holiday ideas for kids, green kids

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Disneynature’s Chimpanzee Swings Into Theaters for Earth Day 2012

by Jennifer Chait, 04/17/12 filed under: green holiday ideas for kids, green kids, kids entertainment

Each Earth Day for the past three years, Disneynature has brought families around the globe a little closer to nature with enchanting movies such as Earth, Oceans and African Cats. This Earth Day is no different as Disneynature’s newest adventure brings the world of chimpanzees to life. Disneynature Chimpanzee introduces us to the adorable little Oscar, a young chimpanzee whose playful curiosity and zest for discovery light up the African forest until a poor twist of fate leaves Oscar all alone to fend for himself in the wild. Directed by Alastair Fothergill (“African Cats” and “Earth”) and Mark Linfield (“Earth”), and narrated by Tim Allen (ABC’s “Last Man Standing”) this new Disneynature film is sure to engage, inspire, and educate audiences everywhere. Keep reading to see a trailer and learn more about the movie and how you can help save chimps and their habitat.

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Mercury Dental Fillings are Poisoning the Fish You Eat

by Jennifer Chait, 04/17/12 filed under: green family, green kids, health & body, kids health, news, toxins

Child Patient at the Dentist – Image from Shutterstock

A new “Earth Day” report shows that the real cost of dental mercury fillings may be poisoning the food supply and fish in particular. According to this report, prepared by Brussels-based Concorde East/West Sprl, an international consulting firm that provides research to the UN and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), among others, dental mercury used widely in society results in additional pollution control costs, deterioration of public resources and negative health effects associated with mercury contamination. Currently, “Amalgam (mercury dental filling material) has been nearly phased out in many countries, including the Nordic countries, Germany, Italy, Japan and even Mongolia and Vietnam” according to Dr. Nestor Shapka of the International Academy of Oral Medicine & Toxicology. Yet, here in the USA, mercury fillings are still used (not to mention mercury is found in countless products), but as this report shows, maybe they shouldn’t be. The EPA reported on this issue way back in 2010, stating, “50% of mercury entering local waste treatment plants comes from dental amalgam waste. Once deposited, certain microorganisms can change elemental mercury into methylmercury, a highly toxic form that builds up in fish, shellfish and animals that eat fish” – of course people eat the fish too.

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