Several couches in the U.S. are sold with potentially toxic chemical flame retardants that have been associated with cancer, neurological damage, and hormone disruption.

This finding was published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology and came from a team of experts from Duke University.

“Tris” was one of the chemicals found in the couches. It is a chlorinated flame retardant, and based on animal studies, is known to cause cancer.

“Tris was phased out from use in baby pajamas back in 1977 because of its health risks, but it still showed up in 41 percent of the couch foam samples we tested,” explained Heather Stapleton, associate professor of environmental chemistry at Duke’s Nicholas School of the Environment.

In order to abide by California Technical Bulletin 117 (TB 117), an increasing number of manufacturers are treating their couches’ foam padding with chemical flame retardants.

TB 177 aims to lower the amount of deaths and injuries from fires that accidentally get started in homes. It says that all residential furniture that is sold in California should be able to resist a 12-second exposure to an open flame without catching on fire.

The statewide standard has actually become a national standard over the years because of the California market’s economic significance.

The manufacturer, in the majority of cases, may not even be aware of what chemicals were used in the couch. This is because most padding foams are purchased from a vendor, who receives the chemicals to treat it from another vendor. The names of the flame retardants, therefore, either get lost through this process or the law protects them as proprietary.

Stapleton and her team examined 102 polyurethane foam samples from sofas that Americans bought for their homes between 1985 and 2010.

Not only was Tris detected, but the flame-retardant pentaBDE (penta brominated diphenyl ether) was also found in 17% of the foam samples. PentaBDE is prohibited in 12 states in the U.S. and in 172 countries. The U.S. manufacturers phased it out on their own free will in 2005.

Research from last year found that although pentaBDE was banned, it was still found in baby utilities, such as high chairs, strollers, and car seats.

Since pentaBDEs are long-lasting chemicals, they can travel into the environment over time, and eventually, gather in living things. Previous research has shown that these substances can interrupt endocrine activity and even have an effect on thyroid regulation and brain development..

Early exposure to pentaBDEs has been associated with:

  • lowered IQ
  • impaired motor development
  • impaired behavioral development
  • low birth weight

In the couches that were bought before 2005, the flame retardants detected were Tris and PentaBDE. After 2005, Tris was the flame retardant that was found most often.

Two new flame-retardant chemical mixtures were recognized by the scientists, after examining sofas that were purchased more recently, which had very little data available on their health risks.

Stapleton said:

“Overall, we detected flame-retardant chemicals in 85 percent of the couches we tested and in 94 percent of those purchased after 2005. More than half of all samples, regardless of the age of the couch, contained flame retardants that are potentially toxic or have undergone little or no independent testing for human health risks.

If a couch has a California TB 117 label, you can all but guarantee it contains chemical flame retardants. But this is where labeling requirements get confusing: the lack of a TB 117 label on a couch does not guarantee the absence of chemical flame retardants. It’s not that cut-and-dried.”

In recent years, there have been several new proprietary chemical flame retardants established, making it a challenge for researchers to name all of them and determine their existence in consumer merchandise.

Written by Sarah Glynn