Do not freak out about this.
I am posting this site - though I may be extremely, extremely behind the 8 ball on this one - for one reason... it is the opposite (or seems to be) of all the alarmist stuff that one finds when one googles what one should not be googling. I do not know anything about them, and they could be much more crazy than the random people that post random things that google displays for me o see. BUT tonight I think they look kind of cool. First let me explain why I what I am even sort of talking about.
Here is what happens every few weeks in my household:
Something is done or bought that triggers my "haven't I heard bad stories about this?" bell
I "google" said thing
I get a bunch of links detailing my exact fear (many of which are random people all over the world telling anecdotal proof of what I fear)
I also usually get a bunch that help balance out those other crazy nervous moms out there that are spouting all this crazy nervous "proof"
I email Aaron, asking, "uh oh have I doomed our entire household by airing out the mattress only three days"
He sighs, rubs his forehead, and spends valuable time doing "real" doctor type research.
He gives me a balanced response.
I chill out.
All is well.
Well, so, we got all three kids new mattresses. Okay, they came WITH their new beds. I remembered how we aired out Abby's (now Jack's) crib mattress for like three months before letting her sleep on it (actually I don't think she was even born while it was airing).
The boys' two really gave off some fumes. It's like we just painted that room sort of fumes. So, I google "new mattress toxins" and freak out. The debate apparently stems mostly from the law about mattresses having to have flame retardants now. I, like one of the commenters on this blog post, presumed that had to do with smoking or that awful occurence in the 80's or 90's when the father set his son on fire. I would have remained thinking that if not for this site
www.stats.org
and more specifically these two posts there:
http://stats.org/stories/2007/attack_killer_mattresses_nov6_07.htm
http://thestatsblog.wordpress.com/2008/02/12/if-you-vomit-while-talking-to-a-cbs-reporter-are-you-allergic-to-cbs/
Am I holding them up to be the end all be all? No, but at least, if you are freaked out about something in the middle of the night - especially a statistic one may have just heard - it's going to take the crazy down a notch.
I think those in my family and those in my friends' circles have seen enough unexplained, nonsensical cancer in our loved ones to realize there are risks out there we don't know about. So I don't believe just because it can't be proven, it's not true, so please don't take that away from me posting this site. I am just enjoying reading the 'other side' to some of these scares.
I'm still airing out the mattresses, I'm also going to get vinyl covers since bedwetting is likely anyway... I am not going to freak out about this however and order new mattresses... tonight anyway...
120: Yellow
3 months ago
4 comments:
Ah, yes, the mattress debate. I am well aware. Anna's crib mattress was an all organic cotton and wool no chemical one that cost an arm and a leg. My thinking was that little tiny babies are more vulnerable to any possible toxins (though, of course, she ended up sleeping with us for very nearly two years anyhow. On a regular mattress that we had had for nearly ten years, heh heh). We just ordered her twin size mattress after some debate and research into this and did go with a "standard" mattress, which I will air out for....well, as long as I can hold her off sleeping on it (doubtful that this will be very long as she is quite excited about it).
You know, even after (during?) experiencing cancer myself, I realized that there is no way to pinpoint exactly WHY/WHAT. One can make oneself crazy trying to blame this or that. I attempt a balanced approach of common sense, coupled with some very basic factors like budgetary constraints. I don't know how else to do it, besides running off and living in the woods somewhere very remote (well, there's probably still stuff in the air or the water or whatever, so that's not even perfect!).
ALL that to say, sigh, sorry, I totally get the stress of the alarming reports of WHATEVER, especially when it is about our KIDS. That frankly scares me more than it does anything about myself.
I personally think we humans are tougher than we get credit for. I would worry if you maybe lived in a mattress factory...
Egyption and Roman women survived lead in their daily makeup, I have eaten cookie batter for 66 years, you had peanut butter as a first food, and kids have lived with toxic paint for hundreds of years (except, I suppose, the ones who teethed on table legs and the woodwork) and were normal. Shrug.
airing stuff out never seems like a bad idea... but how I love that new car or book smelll :) ... thanks for sharing your thoughts... luuuuuv u
I also totally freaked out about this before Ava was born. We bought an organic mattress for Ava's mini crib, and it cost more than the crib itself, but I felt a little better about it. When we transitioned her into the big crib, with Alex's old mattress, she was 11 months, so wasn't too worried about it. From what I gathered in my google expedition, what you need to mostly be concerned about is the combo of spit-up/drool and the fumes from the mattress. There are some theories out there that say this can contribute to SIDS.
It sounds like you've got it all worked out though, and everything will turn out just fine!
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