PBDE
Introduction
PBDE’s are chemicals used extensively in several consumer products around the world. They are mainly flame-retardants and are found in consumer goods such as electrical equipment, construction materials, coatings, textiles and polyurethane foam (furniture padding) http://clinmedres.org/content/1/4/281.short. Similar in structure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), PBDEs resist degradation in the environment. PBDEs were typically produced commercially at three different levels of bromination; nominally penta-, octa- and deca-BDE. The deca-PBDE formulation made up 83.3% of the 2001 PBDE global market demand, followed by penta- 11.1%, and octa- 5.6 %( LaA Guardia et al 2006). While PBDE’s are shown to be harmful in that they are bioaccumulative, they are integral part of our everyday lives and currently have no alternatives which are less harmful, as shown in a study by Wu et al in 2011. They showed that non- PBDE brominated fire retardants, such as BTBPE and HBB had comparable or even greater BAF (bioaccumulative factor) than PBDE congeners suggesting that these agents have potentially high environmental risks as well.
The question is whether the benefits of PBDE’s outweigh the evidence presented by multiple studies revealing its imminent bioaccumulation not only in the environment but in humans as well due to its similarity to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
Fire can cause devastation and disrupt lives of thousands of people as it has done in the past and will continue to do so, whether of natural or other causes. In United states, each year more than 4,000 people living in the US are killed (13.4 deaths per million people) and approximately 25,000 are injured in fires. Fire kills more people in the US than all natural disasters combined, with at least 80 percent of all fire deaths occurring in residences. In 2001, direct property loss due to fires was an estimated $10.6 billion (US Fire Administration 2001). During the past several
PBDE’s are chemicals used extensively in several consumer products around the world. They are mainly flame-retardants and are found in consumer goods such as electrical equipment, construction materials, coatings, textiles and polyurethane foam (furniture padding) http://clinmedres.org/content/1/4/281.short. Similar in structure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), PBDEs resist degradation in the environment. PBDEs were typically produced commercially at three different levels of bromination; nominally penta-, octa- and deca-BDE. The deca-PBDE formulation made up 83.3% of the 2001 PBDE global market demand, followed by penta- 11.1%, and octa- 5.6 %( LaA Guardia et al 2006). While PBDE’s are shown to be harmful in that they are bioaccumulative, they are integral part of our everyday lives and currently have no alternatives which are less harmful, as shown in a study by Wu et al in 2011. They showed that non- PBDE brominated fire retardants, such as BTBPE and HBB had comparable or even greater BAF (bioaccumulative factor) than PBDE congeners suggesting that these agents have potentially high environmental risks as well.
The question is whether the benefits of PBDE’s outweigh the evidence presented by multiple studies revealing its imminent bioaccumulation not only in the environment but in humans as well due to its similarity to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
Fire can cause devastation and disrupt lives of thousands of people as it has done in the past and will continue to do so, whether of natural or other causes. In United states, each year more than 4,000 people living in the US are killed (13.4 deaths per million people) and approximately 25,000 are injured in fires. Fire kills more people in the US than all natural disasters combined, with at least 80 percent of all fire deaths occurring in residences. In 2001, direct property loss due to fires was an estimated $10.6 billion (US Fire Administration 2001). During the past several
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