Keep Harmful Chemicals Out of Children’s Products
A couple of years ago, I attended a presentation by the Environmental Working Group called “10 Humans.” Watch the video here. The presentation began by stating that researchers had tested the blood of 10 humans from all different parts of the country and all different racial and socio-economic backgrounds and had found a total of 287 chemicals, which these humans had no rational reason to be exposed to. That is because these 10 humans were fetuses.
The blood, collected from the umbilical cords of 10 children, harbored pesticides, consumer product ingredients and wastes from burning coal, gasoline, and garbage. Among them were eight perfluorochemicals used as stain and oil repellants in fast food packaging, clothes and textiles — including the Teflon chemical PFOA, recently characterized as a likely human carcinogen by the EPA's Science Advisory Board — dozens of widely used brominated flame retardants and their toxic by-products and numerous pesticides.
Of the 287 chemicals detected in umbilical cord blood, 180 are known to cause cancer in humans or animals, 217 are toxic to the brain and nervous system and 208 cause birth defects or abnormal development in animal tests.
This is just one example of the kind of breakthrough research being done by the Environmental Working Group. They also have a number of consumer-friendly resources that help people make better purchasing decisions for their families. EWG's Skin Deep Cosmetics Database allows you to enter in the name of any ingredient found in a personal care product and read about its safety. We often recommend this to customers at Sprout.
Because of all the work that this organization does to better inform us and to make the environment safer for our children, we are trying to support them in any way we can. We hope you will join us!
During the month of March, Sprout will help support the Environmental Working Group Action Fund by making donations based on the following:
- For every purchase made on the Sprout website during the month of March, we will donate $5. Shop now.
- For every new Sprout Facebook fan gained during the month of March, we will donate $2. Become a fan.
- And don't forget to spread the word!
The Environmental Working Group Action Fund is currently raising money to support the following causes, which we think are essential to the health of you and your little Sprout:
- the fight for organic produce
- the EWG Action Fund safe chemicals campaign
- the removal of chemicals in your food and water
- the protection of your favorite national parks from mining destruction
– Suzanne