Unfortunately, an alarmist report from a group called the Ecology Center may have some parents hesitating before they fasten their child into a car seat. The Center is spreading the word that 60 percent of child car seats contain allegedly dangerous chemicals. Bromine, chlorine, lead, other heavy metals, and allergens topped their list, as did the risk of allergies, birth defects, impaired learning, liver toxicity, and cancer upon exposure. As a public service, the Center is pointing parents toward the brands they say have the lowest levels of such toxins. We call such assertions a public disservice.
This is a perfect example of getting people to worry about something that saves lives, says ACSH's Dr. Elizabeth Whelan. As with the predictable semi-annual alarms about toxic pesticides on fruits and vegetables, these groups irresponsibly scare parents away from safe foods and products while simultaneously denying responsibility for the unintended consequences of their baseless smears.
The media, which eagerly trumpet these junk reports, are complicit in these campaigns whose sole goals are to garner publicity and subscribers, says ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross. The trace levels of various chemicals pose absolutely no risk to the health of infants, or of anyone else.
