Washington, DC -- The American Chemistry Council (ACC) has branded a study about the potential health effects of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) as ‘flawed.’
In an article in The Lancet Neurology, Harvard prof Philippe Grandjean and prof Philip Landrigan of Israel’s Mount Sinai Hospital, called for a world-wide review of industrial chemicals regulation including PBDE, a flame retardant found in furniture, electronics and clothing.
The ACC described the paper as a “rehash of the authors’ 2006 opinion paper” and added “this iteration is as highly flawed as the first.”
“Once again the authors ignore the fundamental scientific principles of exposure and potency. As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stated, the level of exposure to a chemical is most relevant, not its mere presence," the press release stated.
The council said the authors focus largely on chemicals and heavy metals that have already been highly regulated, are restricted or being phased out.
“They then extrapolate that similar conclusions should be applied to chemicals that are more widely used in consumer products without evidence to support their claims. Such assertions do nothing to advance true scientific understanding and only create confusion and alarm.
