our children deserve the most pure of what life has to offer, but do they really make a
difference when it comes to the materials used on your stroller?
Let’s think about this from a logical standpoint. It’s common sense that toxic chemicals
and babies don’t mix, so why is it alright for the most frequently used baby products,
strollers and car seats, to be constructed containing chemicals like PVC, phthalates, lead
and bromated flame retardants (BFRs)? The answer is simple – regulation and cost.
Using high-end materials and minimal-to-zero chemicals takes ingenuity and, of course,
the almighty dollar. However, some high-end stroller manufacturers are still using some
chemicals in their products that, yes, your baby might be lounging on. While a baby’s
skin is much thinner than an adult’s - roughly five times thinner, some chemicals used
in the construction of your stroller may be so minimal that it probably won’t do any
tangible harm to your child. In fact, a trace amount of some chemicals is acceptable
in all baby products under regulation by the U.S. government. In the past few years,
restrictions mandated on the use of chemicals in baby products has significantly increased
and become more stringent under laws like ASTM F963-07e1 for European, Canadian
and Japanese toy standards, and the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008
which under Title 1 - Children’s Product Safety, defines what the government deems
acceptable levels of chemicals in children’s products in the U.S. These laws, among
others, limit the concentrated amounts of certain chemicals known to be problematic and
are a good standard to go by.
Some stroller companies are becoming pioneers in eco-friendly construction of their
products, to name a few, Maclaren, Stokke, Uppa Baby and Orbit Baby. These companies are
proving that you should get what you pay for and that our most precious resource, our
children, shouldn’t be held victim to the manufacturers sliding under the radar in using
toxins in their products.
So, what does this all mean to you and your baby? Not to make light of chemicals
being harmful to your children, but honestly there are chemicals in the air we breathe
every day. Chemicals emit from nearly every product out there and land on our skin, in
household dust and into our bodies. It’s inevitable that we will be exposed to chemicals
throughout our lifetime, but we can do the best job possible at minimizing the collection
of harmful toxins that we ingest, and of course, our little ones ingest on a regular basis.
For a more detailed review on top stroller manufacturers leading the industry in eco-
friendly measures visit non-toxic kids.net and healthystuff.org, our one of my personal favorites,
Safety Mom. These sites will help you
find out what products are safe, borderline and the ones you should burn immediately.
That last one was just a joke – never set fire to a stroller! That is, if you can find one
that isn’t flame retardant…
Since day one, Buggy Bubbles uses only the most eco-friendly baby products to maintain
the cleanliness of your child’s strollers and car seats. Contact us for a “buggy bath” so
we can help you ensure your child is breathing less of the junk and more of the good
stuff!
By Sarah Mitchell
Not and expert - just a mom.
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