Could Your New Mattress Be Making You Sick?
Federal Flameproof Mattress Regulation Creates New Health Risk
70 seconds open flame test
NBC and CBS Poison Mattress news featured on Valentine’s Day (Feb-14-08):
The NBC Investigative Reporter caught the government in a lie saying chemicals in beds don’t get out. Then the reporter showed the government's own scientific report proving chemicals do leach out and are absorbed in our bodies.
Mattresses must now withstand this open flame test for 70 seconds at 2,000 degrees. Wool burns at 600 degrees. This is a new mattress regulation and July 1, 2007 was the compliance deadline for the national regulation, and all mattresses that are manufactured after that date contain toxic chemicals.
NBC interviewed several mattress factory employees who say they and dozens of their co-workers have gotten sick in the past eight months. Employees were experiencing rashes, fever, skin irritations, headaches, sore throats, nose bleeds, bronchitis and coughs. They all say the health problems began last year when the manufacturers started making mattresses that pass the government’s new flame test. When asked if they would sleep on the mattresses their factory was making the workers stated they would not.
Although we may not know every chemical that has to be put in these mattresses in order to pass the 70 second open flame test (2,000 degrees) what we do know is that insecticides, fertilizers, antimony (arsenic-cancer), boric acid (roach killer), ammonium polyphosphate (fertilizer that breaks down to ammonia), melanine (poisoned out pets recently), formaldehyde (cancer-blindness), polyvinyliden chloride (PVDC),.fiberglass, and silica glass (simple glass) are some of what is being used. Many of these chemicals are proven to leach from mattresses and can be absorbed into our bodies. European scientists have proven that antimony leaches through vinyl on crib mattress. Yes, many new crib mattresses contain antimony. Antimony poisoning is similar to arsenic poisoning.
Mattress manufactures deny using chemicals, and there is no labeling requirement. I have been asked to inform my patients of the possible health risk and give patients freedom of choice. Most people do not want to unknowingly sleep in and absorb toxic chemicals.
All mattresses contain chemicals but now with the added chemical there is a very serious health risk. Spread the word and tell your friends to be very careful. These companies may not reveal the truth to you.
You now need a written prescription in order to get an organic bed prescribed by your medical doctor or chiropractor to avoid the regulation. There are companies that do make mattresses without these chemicals and they are costly. Read “Is Your New Mattress Safe by Dr. Doris Rapp, M.D. $14.95
Shauna Brastock, D.C.
