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Are Fire Retardants Putting Us At Risk? (Part 5)

March 12, 2010
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Chlorinated tris, a chemical that has been shown to mutate DNA, is one of the chemicals being used as a flame retardant in baby product foam and furniture.
Abby Batchelder CC-2.0
Chlorinated tris, a chemical that has been shown to mutate DNA, is one of the chemicals being used as a flame retardant in baby product foam and furniture.

From The Environment Report

Producer: Rebecca Williams

Flame retardant chemicals help keep foam and plastics from catching on fire. But certain kinds of these chemicals are building up in people. And hundreds of studies are suggesting links to problems with brain development, and thyroid and fertility problems. In the final part of our five part series... Rebecca Williams reports on the alternatives to these chemicals:

More about the study on chlorinated tris in furniture

Green Science Policy Institute

Tips on reducing your exposure to PBDEs

Arts & Culture

NPR

A Race Against Time To Find WWI's Last 'Doughboys'

In 2003, Richard Rubin set out to talk to every American veteran of World War I he could find. With help from the French, he tracked down dozens of centenarian vets and recorded their stories in a new book called The Last of the Doughboys.

Food

NPR

The Great Charcoal Debate: Briquettes Or Lumps?

Does the kind of charcoal you use really make a difference when it comes to grilling up a tasty steak or other food on the grill? Yes — but deciding which one to use depends on what you're after. Both briquettes and lump charcoal — aka "natural" hardwood charcoal — have their advantages and disadvantages.

Politics

NPR

Obama's Terrorism Fight Is Colored Gray, Not Black And White

If President Obama's newly recalibrated counterterrorism strategy demonstrates anything, it is his penchant for nuance.

Technology

NPR

Google Reportedly Faces FTC Antitrust Probe Over Display Ads

The Federal Trade Commission is in the early stages of opening an antitrust probe into how Google runs its online display advertising business, according to a report by Bloomberg News, citing sources who want to remain anonymous because the FTC has not announced the probe.

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