Cheap Mattresses May Be
Health Hazards



Canadians who sleep on cheap imported mattresses from China are spending their nights in bed with toxic chemicals banned in Canada. Phil Kriszenfeld, whose family has been making mattresses in the Hamilton area since 1967, wants people to think about that health threat the next time they head out to buy a new mattress.

"We want them to buy things that are made in Canada, in safe Canadian factories," the president of Royal Mattress said. "If this is to be solved, it has to start with consumers demanding a little more knowledge."

On the heels of consumer disasters involving lead-tainted toys and poisonous pet food from China, Kriszenfeld is sounding an alarm about imported mattresses containing man-made fire retardant chemicals called PBDEs (polybrominated diphenyl ethers).

The chemicals, branded as toxic by Canada’s health and environment departments in 2006, are no longer manufactured or used here, but are found in imported products and parts used to make electronics, furniture, carpets, curtains, mattresses and other goods.

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