USA Today article on Phthalates for anyone interested

[brittone2]

my apologies if someone already posted a link to this but I stumbled across this today while doing some reading:

http://www.safecosmetics.org/newsroom/usa_today_8_2_05.cfm

[momto2boys]

Beth:

Thanks for posting the link to this article. I have become more interested in it pthalates after reading the threads on the board. I've become so concerned about it that I ordered Sigg aluminum water bottles for both DS's to replace the plastic. I also plan to purchase some Corelle plates for them to replace the plastic ones we currently use.

Thank you again for the link,
Kathy

[aliceinwonderland]

Thanks Beth. I am buying all the toys my son needs in Europe this winter :)

Edited to add that I am glad the issue is getting at least a bit of manistream press. My in-laws already think I'm completely nuts. Which is true, but not on those grounds :)

[brittone2]

Yes, I'm glad to see it getting more mainstream coverage as well. My family thinks I'm over the top w/ my fear of plastic, but hopefully as awareness grows they'll understand a bit better.

LOL Eri about the ILs. Mine think i'm nuts too :)

[houseof3boys]

Thanks Beth. I have been talking to DH about all of this lately and this "mainstream" article is perfect for him.

You are such a wealth of knowledge about this and I really appreciate the time you take to educate us all. I am ignorant about most of the facts wtih phyhalates, but I am learning!

[Vajrastorm]

Thank you.

I am just beginning to look into these kinds of issues, and yikes! :( I'm feeling very creeped out.

[brittone2]

Yes, scary stuff. I think the important part is to push our government and the companies that we buy from to at least LABEL phthalates. It isn't fair that we don't get a choice much of the time because it is so difficult to determine whether or not a product contains them. It just shouldn't be that way :( Whether or not the gov't agrees with the safety of these products, it is important that as consumers we have a way of avoiding phthalate-containing products if we choose to.

[chlobo]

I don't understand why it isn't already required by law. I often feel like a sheep being led to the slaughter.

[brittone2]

Industry drives the U.S. We don't like to "upset" big business. THey contribute all the $$ to drive politics. Of course, just my 2 skeptical cents ;) Sad, huh?

[aliceinwonderland]

Because money talks, and big businesses are much more influential than children.

Is it a surprise some of the most polluting plants, etc. are in poor areas? So sad. Plus we have an inherent hatred of regulation, which is fine, but sometimes has disastrous results (see recent California energy crises for example).

Slightly off topic, but this is why I laugh (sarcastically) when people complain about lawyers and lawsuits, product liability and such: the statistical fact is: very few harmed people sue, and we are jaded by the big verdicts we hear on the news. And some of the worst industrial wrong-doing has even revealed in a courtroom, NOT by the EPA or what have you.
As an example, see recent Teflon lawsuits. Off my soap box for now :)

[daniele_ut]

This paragraph is causing me a bit of a heart attack given Logan's 3 week stint in the NICU:

"In a separate study, Harvard and CDC researchers found that boys in neonatal intensive care units had phthalate levels about 25 times higher than the general population. This is two years after the Food and Drug Administration warned hospitals that phthalate leaching out of plastics used in medical devices carries such a health risk to baby boys that those devices shouldn't be used on babies or on pregnant women carrying male fetuses."

GRRRR!

[brittone2]

:(

[yhtking]

Do you think this chemical exist in some of the plastic bowls and plates that are sold from Pottery Barn Kids? I'm paranoid now.


Mommy to Tyler (6-6-3) and baby Hailey (6-4-5)

[chlobo]

It would be nice to believe that a children's retailer had children's best interests at heart and didn't use the stuff in their products but that is *not* usually the case. The only way to be sure would be to contact pottery barn.