New Study Shows Link between Flame Retardant Exposures and Children’s Social Behaviors - Alaska Community Action on Toxics

Please join us for our next CHE-Alaska teleconference. We will be discussing a new study that shows a link between flame retardant exposures and children's social behaviors.

Date: Tuesday, April 25, 2017

Time: 9:00 am – 10:00 am Alaska Time (10:00 am Pacific; 1:00 pm Eastern)

Some chemicals added to furniture, electronics and many other consumer products to prevent fires may have unintended developmental consequences for young children, according to a pilot study conducted by researchers at Oregon State University. The study recruited 92 Oregon children between ages 3-5 to wear a silicone wristband for seven days to measure exposure to flame retardants. When researchers analyzed teacher-related social behavior assessments and exposure levels, they observed that children who had more exposure to organophosphate classes of flame retardants (which have been added to consumer products more recently) were more likely to exhibit externalizing behaviors such as aggression, defiance, hyperactivity, inattention, and bullying.

Join Dr. Molly Kile, associate professor in the College of Public Health and Human Sciences at OSU and principal investigator of the study for a discussion of the study's findings and why further research is needed to better understand the links between widely-used flame retardants and children’s social skill development.

Sign up for this call