• Posted April 22, 2025

Potentially Harmful Chemicals Found In Kids' Mattresses

TUESDAY, April 22, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Babies and toddlers could be exposed to harmful chemicals while they sleep, due to compounds found in their mattresses, two new studies say.

Air samples taken from 25 children’s bedrooms revealed elevated levels of more than two dozen phthalates, flame retardants and other potentially hazardous chemicals, one of the studies says.

The highest levels of these chemicals were around the beds of the children, who were 6 months to 4 years old, researchers reported in the journal Environmental Science and Technology Letters.

In a second study, researchers analyzed 16 newly purchased children’s mattresses and confirmed they are likely the major source of these chemical in kids’ bedrooms.

When researchers simulated a child’s body temperature and weight on the mattresses, chemical emissions increased dramatically, according to the study in Environmental Science & Technology.

"Sleep is vital for brain development, particularly for infants and toddlers,” said senior researcher Miriam Diamond, a professor of environmental science at the University of Toronto.

“However, our research suggests that many mattresses contain chemicals that can harm kids’ brains,” she added in a news release. “This is a wake-up call for manufacturers and policymakers to ensure our children’s beds are safe and support healthy brain development.”

The phthalates and flame retardants measured in this study are hormone disruptors, researchers said. hormone disruptors — chemicals that interfere with the body's own hormone system — have been linked to brain concerns including learning disorders, reduced IQ, behavioral problems and impaired memory.

Children are uniquely vulnerable to exposure from these chemicals, because their brains are still developing and they have breathing rates 10 times higher than adults, researchers said.

Kids also have more permeable skin and three times the skin surface area relative to their body weight compared to adults, researchers added.

The children’s bedrooms were located in Toronto and Ottawa in Canada, and all of the mattresses were purchased in Canada, researchers noted.

However, most of the mattresses contained materials sourced from the U.S., Mexico and other countries, and these results are likely to apply to mattresses purchased throughout North America, researchers said.

"Parents should be able to lay their children down for sleep knowing they are safe and snug,” researcher Arlene Blum, executive director of the Green Science Policy Institute, said in a news release.

“Flame retardants have a long history of harming our children’s cognitive function and ability to learn,” she said. “It’s concerning that these chemicals are still being found in children’s mattresses even though we know they have no proven fire-safety benefit, and aren’t needed to comply with flammability standards.”

Manufacturers should be more vigilant regarding chemicals used in children’s mattresses, and stronger regulations on their use are needed, researchers argued.

In the meantime, researchers said parents can reduce children’s exposure to these chemicals by decluttering their sleeping area — removing unnecessary pillows, blankets and toys.

Parents should frequently wash and refresh kids’ bedding and bedclothes, since these can provide a protective barrier against mattress chemicals, researchers added.

Undyed or neutral color fabrics are likely safer, because they don’t need chemicals called UV filters that are added to strong colors to protect them against fading in sunlight, researchers said.

More information

The Cleveland Clinic has more on phthalates.

SOURCE: Green Science Policy Institute, news release, April 15, 2025