It seems my last entry on the new Flame Retardant rule has caused a real stir.  I've had consumers, industry members and even government officials contact me regarding the truth to all of this. 

I am here to tell you that this is all 100% true and here are some of the government's and industry's own statistics to prove it:

According ISPA (International Sleep Products Association) the most widely used chemicals to fireproof mattresses are:  Boric Acid (Roach Killer), Antimony (Arsenic), Silicon, Deca, Ammonium Polyphosphate, Melamine, and Formaldehyde.

According to Western Nonwovens, a large supplier of F/R material, their chemical mix is suspended in a salt base.  When salt based flame retardants get wet, either through a spill or from body persperation, they come to the surface - carrying the chemicals with it.

According to the CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission), there are no labeling requirements for manufacturers to list that these toxic products are contained in a finished mattress.

By the CPSC's own research, a person sleeping on a mattress where the F/R barrier contains Antimony will absorb .80mg Antimony during the first year of use.  The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) says that the maximum safe limit of Antimony for humans is .03mg.  This means the government has, itself, put forth a rule that will cause consumers to absorb 27 times more Antimony than is considered safe by another government agency. 

It is difficult if not impossible to get a mattress without the F/R barrier, even with a prescription, unless you go to an organic dealer that specifically uses wool as the barrier.  You are rewarded for your efforts, however, because mattresses purchased with a prescription can be tax deductable (consult your tax advisor) as a medical expense, as well as being purchased tax free in many states. 

For those of you that want to sit there and say this isn't a national health risk, it's just not true - and the government's own research and statistics prove it.