Flame Retardants have been shown to cause neurological damage, hormone disruption, and cancer. One of the biggest dangers of some flame retardants is that they bioaccumulate in humans, causing long-term chronic health problems as bodies contain higher and higher levels of these toxic chemicals.

How safe is fire retardant?

The American Chemistry Council (ACC) and other chemical industry groups maintain the safety of currently manufactured flame retardants, and the ACC says that in the U.S. each year flame retardants prevent 360 deaths and 740 injuries that would have resulted from furniture fires alone.

Why is fire retardant bad?

Flame retardant chemicals may even make some fires worse. “The presence of flame retardants in these products results in the production of hazardous chemicals in the air when they do burn, including carbon monoxide, soot, and hydrogen cyanide,” Stapleton adds.