The solutions:
• Don't smoke.
• Don't renovate when pregnant or breast-feeding. If you must renovate, avoid exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs), in particular solvents such as toluene (in oil paints), varnishes, paint thinner, paint strippers, stains, and many glues and adhesives.
• Avoid all of the above in adult and children's craft supplies.
• Use latex-based paints and look for ones that do not contain VOCs. Experts disagree over the danger that pregnant women face from painting. If you're pregnant, to be on the safe side, get someone else to paint the nursery for you, says Koren.
• When choosing carpets, select natural fibres such as wool and avoid using adhesives in installation. If you can afford to replace carpets, do so in rooms where children spend the most time.
• Dust with a damp cloth. "Dust is one of the major routes of exposure [to indoor air contaminants] in children," explains Erica Phipps, partnership director for The Canadian Partnership for Children's Health and Environment, an association of concerned organizations including Toronto Public Health and the Canadian Child Care Federation.
• Use homemade cleaners, such as a 50-50 water-to-white-vinegar solution to clean mirrors, and baking soda to scrub toilets, sinks, floors and other surfaces. Many common household cleaners and air fresheners give off VOCs.
Household Chemicals and Pregnant Women: A Lethal Mix
Exposure to chemicals found in common household items during pregnancy may affect fetal brain development and contribute to childhood autism and attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). At least that's what a study being carried out by Glenys Webster at the University of British Columbia could help determine. The study, the most in-depth of its kind in Canada, is looking at two groups of environmental chemicals:
• flame retardants called polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), which are added to the foam in mattresses, couches and upholstery and to plastic parts in home electronics; and
• stain, water and grease repellents called perfluorocarbons, which are found in nonstick pans, Gortex clothing and inside fast-food packaging.
The concern is that these chemicals may mimic or interfere with thyroid hormones that control fetal brain development, says Webster, who is carrying out the study while completing her PhD at UBC's school of environmental health. "We all have these chemicals in our bodies and we all have them in our homes, and there's almost nothing known about whether the levels that we're already exposed to might be contributing to learning problems, for example, ADHD and autism."
Page 4 of 5
