Baby Elegance Microfibre Mattress - Cot Bed Made using Anti allergy fiber pads for extra strength to the mattressMicro Fiber beveled cover to create a pocket of air for baby to sleep onRemovable and washable coverMade in IrelandCompatibility: Fits most brands of cot bedsMaximum User Weight: 15 kgSuitable from birth - 4 yearsDimensions: 140L x 70W x 10H cmContents: One Baby Elegance Micro Fibre Cot Mattress Baby Elegance Eco Fibre Mattress - Cot Bed Fully breathable and air permeableMade from one strong pad of environmentally friendly fibreWashable and removable coverMade in IrelandFor use in cot bedDimensions: 140L x 70W x 9H cm Baby Elegance Travel Cot Mattress-Contour Electra Made from one strong pad of fibreFully Breathable and air permeableLong lastingRemovable washable coverDimensions: 94L x 66W x 5Dcm Baby Elegance HealthCare Fibre Mattress Cot Bed Layers of Healthcare Fibre protects baby against allergiesOfficial seal of approval from Allergy UKFully breathable and air permeable so baby’s skin can breathe freelyLong lastingBiocide and chemical freeRemovable and washable coverAssembled Dimensions: 140L x 70W x 10H cmContents: A Baby Elegance HealthCare Cot Bed Mattress
Baby Elegance Eco Fibre Mattress - Cot Fully breathable and air permeableMade from one strong pad of environmentally friendly fibreWashable and removable coverMade in IrelandFor use in cotDimensions: 120L x 60W x 9Hcm Baby Elegance Memory Foam Mattress - Cot Bed Memory foam adjusts to baby to create supportive surfaceReduces pressure points increasing comfortUltra soft outer cover for added comfortRemovable and washable outer coverMade in IrelandCompatibility: Fits most brands of cotsSuitable from birth - 4 yearsDimensions: 140L x 70W x 10H cmContents: One Baby Elegance Memory Foam Cot MattressMaximum User Weight: 15 kg Baby Elegance Microfibre Mattress - Cot Made using Anti allergy fiber pads for extra strength to the mattressMicro Fiber beveled cover to create a pocket of air for baby to sleep onRemovable and washable coverMade in IrelandCompatibility: Fits most brands of cotsMaximum User Weight: 15kgSuitable from birth - 2 yearsDimensions: 120L x 60W x 10H cmContents: One Baby Elegance Micro Fibre Cot Mattress
Baby Elegance Foldable Travel Cot Mattress Dimensions: 99L x 69W x 5Dcm Baby Elegance Memory Foam Mattress - Cot Memory foam adjusts to baby to create supportive surfaceReduces pressure points increasing comfortUltra soft outer cover for added comfortRemovable and washable outer coverMade in IrelandCompatibility: Fits most brands of cotsSuitable from birth - 2 yearsDimensions: 120L x 60W x 10H cmContents: One Baby Elegance Memory Foam Cot MattressMaximum User Weight: 15 kg Baby Elegance Eco Fibre Travel Cot Mattress Fully breathableand air permeable due to its open cell structureMade from onestrong pad of fibreLong lastingRemovable washable coverDimensions: 116L x 68W x 5Dcm Baby Elegance Eco Fibre Pocket Spring Mattress - Cot Bed Individually pocketed springs to give all over long lasting support to babyCover is fully removable and washable to keep your mattress cleanAnti- allergy pocket sprung mattressBreathable and long lastingDimensions: 140L x 70W x 10HcmFits most cot beds
Baby Elegance HealthCare Fibre Mattress Cot Layers of Healthcare Fibre protects baby against allergiesOfficial seal of approval from Allergy UKFully breathable and air permeable so baby’s skin can breathe freelyLong lastingBiocide and chemical freeRemovable and washable coverDimensions: 120L x 60W x 10H cmContents: A Baby Elegance HealthCare Cot MattressThe new carpet in my apartment is off-gassing, and I’m dizzy and nauseous from the fumes. How long will it take to finish this process? Can I speed it up? Is my landlord obligated to do anything? Also, I need a new mattress. After this experience with the carpet, I wonder what I should do, because I’ve heard they can off-gas, too. Can you tell me which products and materials to avoid and how to assess their health impacts? Healthier products are often out of my price range. Off-gassing is the evaporation of chemicals from a material. Furniture, plastics, vinyl products, paint, new cars, clothing, cosmetics, water bottles, carpet, and mattresses do it, to name just a few.
Off-gassing materials emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and small particulate substances throughout the life of the material. An amazing resource, the Collaborative on Health and the Environment (CHE) Toxicant and Disease Database is a searchable online database that summarizes links between chemical contaminants and approximately 180 human diseases or conditions. The CHE points out that more than 80,000 chemicals have been developed, distributed, and discarded into the environment over the past fifty years. Most have not been tested for toxic effects in humans or animals, and some are common in air, water, food, homes, work places, and communities. Synthetic carpets are made from nylon fibers with a polypropylene backing. Of the chemicals released from carpet, most notable are styrene and 4-phenylcyclohexane (4-PC), both of which come from the latex backing used on 95 percent of carpets. The “new carpet” aroma is the odor of 4-PC off-gassing, which is an eye– and respiratory-tract irritant that may also affect the central nervous system.
The adhesive used to affix the carpet to the floor typically contains benzene and toluene, some of the most harmful VOCs. Each of us reacts differently to the chemical stew we face on a daily basis, and recognizing such health effects may be difficult. Typical reactions to new carpet VOCs include headaches, nausea, dizziness, shortness of breath, and asthmatic reactions. Longer-term effects are also possible; the CHE lists benzene as having a strong link to leukemia and lymphomas, while styrene is associated with cognitive impairment and hearing loss, among other conditions. Carpets can emit VOCs for five years or possibly more, although the off-gassing decreases significantly several months after installation. The Environmental Protection Agency advises ventilating well for at least 72 hours after installation by opening windows and using fans that move air directly to the outdoors. Continue to use fans during installation and for several weeks afterward. Another recommendation is to ask the installer to vacuum the new carpet with a HEPA filter vac and clean with a hot water extraction, which can remove a good portion of the VOCs.
If possible, take a vacation soon afterward. When there’s a choice, the best alternative is to rip out wall-to-wall carpet and use area rugs instead. Even the best wall-to-wall carpet is a haven for dust mites, mold spores, and lingering VOCs, and is usually one of the largest hosts of contaminants in our homes. If this isn’t possible, pick a natural fiber carpet such as wool with a natural backing. Pick the least toxic adhesive or, even better, no adhesive. The healthier choice can be more expensive, but those with asthma, respiratory problems, and environmental illnesses may need to choose it. The Children’s Health Environmental Coalition’s Web site includes some very helpful pointers about new carpet installation. Since you’re a renter, the burden will likely be on you to find and present these healthier options to your landlord, who might be willing to make a change if these products cost the same as conventional carpeting, are easy to procure, and meet their sensibilities.
Now, about that mattress. We spend about a third of our lives in bed. Most standard mattresses are made of polyurethane foam, which can emit toluene and are treated with water-, stain-, and wrinkle-resistant chemicals such as formaldehyde. In California, flame retardants may contribute the biggest chemical load; in the ‘80s, the state began requiring mattresses to be fire-resistant because of concerns about fallen cigarettes. Furniture and mattress manufacturers began using polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDEs, as flame retardants, and this group of chemicals, which are highly bioaccumulative and toxic, became the standard. PBDEs can cause permanent neurological and developmental damage including deficits in learning, memory and hearing, changes in behavior, and delays in sensory-motor development. They are especially dangerous to children, because they accumulate in fatty tissue and are passed on in breast milk. PBDEs cause ecological harm too. The Environmental Working Group found PBDEs in six kinds of commonly eaten San Francisco Bay fish—worse yet, in every fish sampled.
Fish caught in 2002 by local anglers were compared with archived samples from 1997, and PBDE levels had more than doubled in halibut and more than tripled in striped bass—the two most commonly eaten species, and key indicators of overall contamination. Assemblymember Wilma Chan authored legislation that as of 2008 bans some of the most toxic forms of PBDEs. If you’re shopping for a new bed and money is no object, you’ll find an array of chemical-free wool, organic cotton, and natural latex mattresses. Buy one if you are able. (Search online—wool mattresses from Midwest manufacturers are reasonably priced.) Most natural mattresses cost about the same as a high-end synthetic mattress and box spring; a queen size organic cotton mattress will run around $1,500. For those juggling money, an organic cotton or wool futon might be affordable for $600 or less. Wool futons last a long time and can be a good investment. Buying an organic cotton or wool mattress barrier pad can help cut the toxins for those of us needing a lower-cost option.