Toxic metals, carcinogens found in car seats and changing pads

Harmful compounds are present in products that kids are exposed to often, including car seats, bibs, and changing pads, according to a report from the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). The substances, which include flame retardants, metals, and phthalates, are known to cause cancer, genetic mutations, or reproductive harm. ECHA scientists collected over 1,500 measurements of childcare products to test for 182 compounds known as CMRs because they are carcinogenic, mutagenic, or toxic for reproduction. They found multiple potentially harmful compounds in concentrations above the European Union’s limits. These include vinyl chloride, lead, cobalt, diisobutyl phthalate, di-n-butyl phthalate, di-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate, and the flame retardants tetrabromobisphenol A and tris(2-chloroethyl)phosphate. In other cases, the compounds themselves were not directly detected but were instead suspected. “They may be present in materials that are used for the production of childcare articles,” says Ulrike Reuter, a toxicologist at the ECHA. For example, vinyl chloride is used as a monomer for polyvinyl chloride, she says, and it’s possible that some vinyl chloride could be left in the polyvinyl chloride used to make a product such as a changing pad. ....