Chemicals From Flooring Are Entering Our Blood

Many people worry about the toxins we consume from the air, water and food we ingest. Now there’s a new worry afoot: harmful chemicals in our flooring. These chemicals are also in house dust and may be inhaled.

A study at Karlstad University in Sweden shows that phthalates from PVC flooring materials are taken up by our bodies. Phthalates are softening agents in plastics believed to cause asthma and allergies, as well as other chronic diseases in children. The research shows that toddlers may be at especial risk as they crawl across PVC flooring.

In the research, urine samples were taken from 83 randomly selected children between the ages of 2 and 6 months by the county council in Värmland, Sweden. The prevalence of four types of phthalates in the urine was measured; and data were collected about flooring materials and the home, the family’s lifestyle, and individual factors for the children. The levels of certain phthalates (MBzP, a BBzP metabolite) proved to be higher in the urine of babies that had PVC materials on their bedroom floor. The levels of another phthalate metabolite related to DEHP were lower in 2-month-old children if they were exclusively breast-fed with no supplements.

“With this study as a basis, we can establish that there are (many) sources that should be taken into consideration in regard to the uptake of banned chemicals and that we do not only ingest them in our food,” says Carl-Gustaf Bornehag, professor of public health at Karlstad University and leader of the study. The findings show that phthalates can be taken up in different ways, both through food and probably through breathing and through the skin.