New research suggests that some commonly used black plastic items could be hazardous to your health.
Testing by scientists in the United States and the Netherlands revealed that the greatest amounts of these toxic chemicals are in takeout sushi trays, spatulas, and beaded necklaces that kids may wear while playing dress-up.
The researchers believe that flame-retardant chemicals released from certain electronics components like television and computer casings during the recycling process may be the source of these contaminants.
“These cancer-causing chemicals shouldn’t be used to begin with, but with recycling, they are winding up in household products where we don’t expect to see them,” says study coauthor Megan Liu, the science and policy manager at Toxic-Free Future, an organization that advocates for environmental health and research.
Chemicals That Raise Cancer Risk
Manufacturers add brominated flame retardants (BFRs) and organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) to electric and electronic products, specifically black-colored plastics, with the goal of keeping consumers safe from fires.
Exposure Likely to Come From Recycled Plastics
Because black plastics from electronics are often recycled and incorporated in household items that do not require flame retardancy, scientists from Toxic-Free Future and collaborators at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam speculated that many people are being exposed to high levels of toxins and may not realize it.
Liu and her colleagues screened more than 200 black plastic household products that would potentially give consumers close contact with these chemicals, including kitchen utensils, toys, and hair accessories.
“We were particularly concerned about exposures from food and ingestion, but also in toys because kids can play with them for long periods of time and flame retardants can leach out of them and get into children’s saliva,” says Liu.
“The evidence from our 2016 study paints a picture of plastic parts like computer housing being separated from electronic waste, crushed and melted, possibly mixed with other recycled plastic streams, sold to factories, and molded again into dark colored plastic items like Mardi Gras style beads and decorations,” says Gillian Miller, PhD, senior scientist at the Ecology Center, a nonprofit environmental organization in Ann Arbor, Michigan. “And in some cases the recycled plastics are used in food packaging, like the sushi tray highlighted in this new paper from Toxic-Free Future.”
Concerns Grow Over Hazardous Chemicals in Plastics
The new research adds to a mounting evidence suggesting that everyday plastic items may contain chemicals that are harmful to our health, says Jason Somarelli, PhD, director of research at the Duke Cancer Institute’s Comparative Oncology Group in Durham, North Carolina.
“We were able to link additives to changes in cellular processes, such as DNA damage,” says Dr. Somarelli, who was not involved in this latest study. “The problem that remains is how many different additives coexist in a single product. We may know what each additive does in isolation, but it’s really poorly understood what the mixtures of chemical soups are doing.”
Advocates Call for Consumer Awareness and Action
Dr. Miller, who was not involved in this research, advises people to support legislation restricting hazardous chemicals in consumer products and support organizations advocating for health and environment protective policies.
“Persistent flame retardants end up in many different places when the computers, phones, TVs, or headphones are obsolete. They go into the air when burned; into landfills, waterways, wildlife and humans; and into new plastic products,” she says. “We need electronics and other products designed to be long-lasting, but not to be trashed when the next version comes out, and not to use these chemical hazards.”
Retailers and brands are increasingly adopting safer chemicals policies to eliminate hazardous chemicals in key products, according to Toxic-Free Future, and the organization spotlights some of those efforts in its Retailer Report Card.