Children are some of the most important people on earth and are sometimes the deciding factors behind the kind of vehicles that people purchase.
Parents know that most passenger cars on the market can be considered a "family car." Still, to accommodate the smallest of children, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recommends that they be in a car seat or a booster seat in case of the unfortunate event of a crash.
However, a disturbing new development has been raised in light of an already very disturbing development about the cars we transport our families in daily.
Car Seat Chemicals
In May, researchers from Duke University, the University of Toronto, and the Green Science Policy Institute found a suspected TCIPP carcinogen in the seat foam of almost all cars on the road.
In their study of 101 cars from 22 manufacturers, the researchers also found known carcinogens, neurotoxins — chemicals that can alter the structure or function of a person's nervous system — and endocrine disrupters — chemicals that can impede the function of a person's endocrine system — which is responsible for one's growth and development, metabolism, and reproduction.
The chemicals, known as Organophosphate ester (OPE) flame retardants, are applied in vehicles to comply with federal flammability standards set by the NHTSA. However, the study has "shown that exposure to certain OPEs is associated with altered birth outcomes, reproductive harm, and carcinogenicity."
According to researchers, one particular OPE known as TDCIPP "has been associated with negative health effects, including decreased fertility, altered thyroid hormone function and cancer."
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A new report from Autoweek points out that while the treated seats can affect adults, the dangers of cancer-causing chemicals also affect the youngest passengers, as a study has shown that the materials used in the foam in car seats can contain the same exact chemicals.
According to a 2022 study by the Ann Arbor-based Ecology Center, researchers examined over 600 components of 25 car seats sourced from the European Union and the United States. They found that more than half of American car seats contain hazardous chemicals, such as flame retardants, and that some chemicals used as fire suppressants are known to be endocrine disruptors.
Jeff Gearhart, the research director of the Ecology Center, told Autoweek that they have been working with car seat manufacturers about the issue since the late 1990s after getting "many requests from parents asking about car seats."
As a result of the dialogue, some car seat manufacturers have stopped using flame retardants and have found a way to comply with the Federal standards without them. However, Gearhart points out that there is a significant factor in these "safe seats" that may affect many parents with small children.
"It’s become a marketing claim," Gearhart told Autoweek. "A solution is to use denser upholstery materials, but using them results in a more expensive seat. And that’s become an affordability issue at the lower end of the market."
In its findings, the Ecology Center found very few flame-retardant-free options for booster seats, car seats, and convertible car seats that cost less than $200. The most expensive can cost as much as $700, burdening many parents.
In a statement to TheStreet, a representative for Chicco USA said that since 2021, they have offered parents an "innovative line of ClearTex® car seats," which "are designed to meet federal flammability safety standards without the addition of flame retardant chemical treatments."
In addition, Chicco claimed that it "regularly and rigorously tests its car seats in partnership with accredited third-party laboratories to ensure materials used in production comply with all federal safety standards."
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Lawmakers react
The rule, known as the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 302, was adopted in 1971 to set a standard for automotive fire safety. According to Aeroblaze, a Texas-based testing laboratory, the rule applies to interior components such as seat cushions, head restraints, seat belts, headlining, and head restraints.
However, given that the rule has not changed since 1971, politicians believe that the measure is outdated and must be updated.
On August 7, Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and two House members, Doris Matsui (D-CA) and H. Morgan Griffith (R-VA), addressed their concerns to the NHTSA in a letter, blasting the agency for upholding an "outdated" rule.
"When the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) adopted FMVSS 302 in 1971, it was designed to protect against the interior spread of fires caused by small, open flames, like discarded cigarettes or matches. Today, far fewer people smoke in their cars, and less than ten percent of vehicle fires are caused by an open flame," the letter said.
"Most vehicle fires are instead caused by mechanical or electrical failures or malfunctions and are very large by the time they reach a vehicle’s interior compartment."
The letter also called on the NHTSA to “review the underlying standard to ensure it protects consumers from both fires and harmful chemicals in their vehicles.”
The article has been updated to reflect comments by Chicco USA. TheStreet has also reached out to car seat manufacturers Graco and Doona for comment.
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