A steady rise of childhood disorders and adult health problems have puzzled scientists for years. Disorders from breast cancer to learning disabilities have a connection to modern living.

Scientists are looking carefully at the prevalence in our environment of certain industrial chemicals at extremely low levels. They are discovering that at even minute levels, these chemicals, previously assumed to be insignificant, are affecting processes such as gene activation and the brain development of newborns. Especially interesting is that some substances that have known effects at low levels, seem to be safe at high levels!

Regulators in Europe and Japan have barred the use of certain compounds in toys and in food service items because of indications that there is no safe level. They are now discovering effects at such low traces that were not measurable a decade ago. Another challenge is that some chemicals seem to have effects when combined with another chemical but seem safe used alone. Our testing procedures only test substances individually for safety. Toxicologists currently derive risk by exposing rodents to find the lowest level at which the rodents have tumors, birth defects, or other observable effects. They then take the highest dose at which there is no observable effect and divide by anywhere from 10 to 1000 to set a maximum "safe" level for humans. Of course if you use more than one product with that safe limit, then the numbers are no longer safe for you.

The other major problem, just now being observed and studied is that chemicals do not exist in isolation. They have a cumulative effect due to the high use of so many of these common chemicals.

Regulators in Europe are now taking a hard look at the pervasive and cumulative nature of these chemicals. Industry is fighting these heavily as that would require the industries to pay to conduct research in order to prove their product safe or to find suitable replacements. CA and NY legislatures are currently considering bills that would ban the use of some of the well known toxic substances. And as you remember, CA was also the first state to legislate removal of the toxic PBDE's in mattresses although the law does not take effect for 3 more years.

Research on SIDS seems to indicate that it is a stress induced death. The stresses of toxic overload, vaccinations, and the chemical soup in traditional crib mattresses has been under scrutiny for years. The back to sleep campaign of laying babies on their backs may have had some success due to the fact that the babies are now breathing farther away from the nasty chemicals. Other research in New Zealand has shown that by wrapping your toxic mattress in polyethylene does prevent SIDS, and organic mattresses, available for decades, also have not been related to any SIDS deaths. Be careful that the mattress does not have any New Zealand wool as that wool does have high levels of arsenic. Make sure the company you purchase any organic mattress from, knows absolutely where the wool comes from and how it was processed.

Here's an interesting website to visit. http://www.grist.org/