| Household chemicals linked to kids’ asthma The chemical compounds that keep or leftovers fresh and make our floors easy to clean may be a factor in the rising levels of asthma and allergies in children around the world over the past 30 years. Five million U.S. children have asthma and 10 percent to 20 percent of infants have eczema, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America reports. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates the cost of treating asthma in these children at $3.2 billion per year. An extensive study of Swedish children found that house dust containing the softeners in plastic that give flexibility to food container, vinyl floor tiles an cling wrap is associated with higher rates of asthma, eczema and other allergy symptoms. The compounds, phthalates (THALL-ates), are widely used in moisturizers, nail polish, insect repellants, shower curtains, hairsprays and building products such as polyvinyl chloride flooring. |
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