Sherwin-Williams: Where Green Means Greed

Interesting to see them covering the earth... with their TOXIC paint.

In 2009 Shewin-Williams introduced a line of paints that “were designed and manufactured taking steps to reduce environmental impact.” Sherwin-Williams even went so far to make sure that the paints adhered to the “GreenSure” criteria – a list of various criteria that paints must meet to be green friendly. However, the “GreenSure” criteria wasn’t created by a third party of concerned environmental scientist, but Sherwin Williams themselves (likely their crafty marketing department). This is pretty odd considering that there are independent third party groups such as “GreenGaurd” and “GreenSeal” that have a set of criteria that is recognized as being truly green. One problem with Sherwin Williams’ “GreenSure” criteria, as Treeehugger noted, is that it allows high levels of dangerous VOCs – hundreds of times higher than those of “GreenGuard” or “GreenSeal,” While it’s great that Sherwin-Williams has decided to create a line of paints that is only slightly less likely to ruin the environment and slightly less likely to make the consumer sick, there is no justification for them to advertise their products that are filled with toxic chemicals as being “green.” This is a lame and transparent attempt to get health and Eco-conscious consumers to buy their product – to put it simply, they’re Greenwashing.

Their “GreenSure” label isn’t the only area where Sherwin-Williams is greenwashing, they are also doing it on their website and in their Corporate Social Responsibility Report. If one were to read the report – which in addition to talking about their “green” paints also discusses their green business practices and community involvement – one would believe that Sherwin-Williams is a company that is fully committed to the green movement and to making our world a healthier place. However, Sherwin-Williams fails to mention that they still sell and promote paints with high-levels of VOCs. As a business that is promoting itself as being green, they should make sure that ALL of their products are low and no VOC, not just a few. Additionally, the other coatings, stains, and supplies that they sell are not environmentally friendly. Furthermore, Sherwin Williams refuses to give out a list of all the chemicals used in their products, making it difficult for the consumer to check the safety of the product themselves. I poked around for some MSDS’s on their websites, and it was not as user friendly as others.

Although Shewin-Williams is doing a few things to make themselves greener – they are changing some of their companies policies and their “GreenSure” line of paints is sold in recycled containers – they are not as green as they claim to be and they are actively greenwashing. Rather than really caring about the environment, Sheriwn-Williams has designed a “green” program only to attract Eco-conscious consumers. While their pocketbook may be in the right place with this type of marketing, their heart certainly isn’t. Consumers that care about the environment owe it to themselves to ignore companies like Sherwin-Williams and make sure to do business with companies that are truly green and that really do care about the environment and the health of their customers.

Further Reading

TreeHugger on Sherwin Williams’ Greenwashing

The Webecoist on different types of Greenwashing

Inhabitat and Degree of Green on Sherwin Williams

What do your paint and dead people have in common?

Formaldehyde!

Anyone who has ever painted a room with conventional paint knows that the smell of paint is terrible. Typically, you have to wear a mask, can’t stay in the room for a few days, and may even feel dizzy or get a headache. This is because conventional paints are filled with harmful chemicals known as VOCs (volatile organic compounds) which emit toxic chemicals into your home (even after the paint dries) and can be detrimental to your health. One of the worst chemicals in conventional paints is also one that is used by morticians to preserve the dead: formaldehyde.

Although safe to use on the recently deceased, formaldehyde can effect the health of adults and children in a variety of negative ways. Multiple studies have found links between the use of paint and childhood cancers. A University of California study found a significant association between rooms painted and an increase in leukemia by 65 percent. Furthermore, mothers who used paint during pregnancy were three-times as likely to have a child with acute lymphobalstic leukemia. There have been several other studies that have uncovered links and associations between formaldehyde and cancers among adults. Studies of paint workers have revealed that they are at a higher risk for cancer of the bladder, lungs, pancreas, liver, and stomach because of their exposure to formaldehyde and other toxic chemicals in paint.

The formaldehyde in paints has also been linked to skin irritations, eye irritations, bronchitis, and can cause problems in the central nervous system. The U.S. National Cancer Instituted found in a 2009 study that the longer funeral workers spent embalming bodies with formaldehyde the more likely they were to to develop certain types of cancer – particularly those who were involved in embalming for more than 20 years. Formaldehyde can also trigger asthma – a condition which has increased nearly 600% since 1980.

To keep yourself and your home from smelling like the dead and causing health problems that could put you six feet under, it’s important you look at the label of all the paints that you buy to see how much formaldehyde it contains. While formaldehyde is federally regulated, many paint companies still carry it at “safe” levels – even though medical evidence suggest the safest level of formaldehyde is none. Read the labels of the paints you purchase, buy paints that don’t contain any VOCs (typically called No VOCs or Zero VOCs), and make sure that the colorants put into the paint don’t contain any VOC. No VOC paints not only are absent of formaldehyde, but they don’t have any other Volatile Organic Compounds making them safe to use! Most who use them say there is very little smell and never feel dizzy or develop the headaches that they once did with conventional paints. Using non-toxic No VOC paints will help you stay away from formaldehyde in your home and in your body for a very long time.

Further Reading

CDC’s Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry Fact Sheet on Formaldehyde

U.S. EPA on Indoor Air Quality and Formaldehyde

Environmental Health Perspectives on the Links between Formaldehyde and Asthma

National Funeral Directors Association on Explain Recent Studies about the Risk of Formaldehyde

Houston, we have an Indoor Air Quality Problem

Unlike other cities, in Houston, we spend most of our time (estimated at 90%) indoors. Because of the heat and because of air quality problems – like ozone levels – we usually believe that buildings are healthier. However, although indoor environments may feel safer, it’s important to remember that indoor air quality too can effect our health.

The EPA ranks indoor air quality among the five largest environmental dangers to the public. They also have found that air indoors can be anywhere from about 2 to 5 times as polluted as outdoor air. For a city like Houston, that’s rated the 3^rd most toxic city in the nation where outdoor air quality is concerned, these numbers are troubling.

The Texas Department of State Health Services finds that “building materials and furnishings; biologicals; products for household cleaning, personal care, or hobbies; central heating and cooling systems and humidification devices; pesticides; oil, gas, kerosene, or wood combustion sources” are the primary sources of indoor air quality problems. They also report that poor indoor air quality can lead to “irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, headaches, dizziness, fatigue, and allergy-type symptoms.” And more seriously, “asthma, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, and humidifier fever can also affect some individuals after exposure to certain indoor air pollutants.” This list of health problems that can emerge from our homes and spend so much time in is startling.

However, rather than living in fear of both the heat outdoors and the pollution indoors we can make smart decisions to make our indoor environments healthier. Start by reading about various pollutants in everyday products in your home online from reliable sources. Also, try to follow these three rules when shopping for things for your home:

1. Look for products that don’t contain any Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)
2. Buy organic – buying organic usually means products haven’t been treated chemically
3. Look for corporate transparency – corporations and stores that tell you what’s in there product usually have healthier products.

Although indoor air quality in Houston is a problem, one needn’t live in fear. Instead, being conscious of what is in your home and around you is the best way to protect your family and your health.

Find out more:

Air Alliance Houston – read reports and get the local information about air quality

The EPA – find out specifics about what’s causing air quality problems in your home and more facts

BuildClean – learn about the sources of air quality problems in your home

Texas Department of Health State Services on Indoor Quality and Indoor Air Quality Programs in Texas

How many chemicals are in your memory foam mattress?

Although many of the words on that list may be hard to pronounce, they’re all volatile organic compounds – chemicals – that can be found in your memory foam mattress. These 61 chemicals are emitted in your home as you sleep, dramatically decreasing the quality of your indoor air environment. These chemicals found in conventional memory foam mattresses have been linked to skin irritations, eye irritations, various forms of cancer, developmental problems in children, and respiratory problems. This is because unsafe mattresses emit these toxic chemicals into your bedroom and body – possibly making you sick.

Although manufacturers of memory foam commonly put these chemicals into their mattresses, there is no reason to. While manufacturers put VOCs into your mattress as a flame retardant, there are several coil spring and memory foam mattress companies that do not because there are natural flame-retardants that can be used. Certain mattresses, particularly those that are organic and are made of natural materials, do not have or emit VOCs yet they still meet fire safety requirements.

What’s most infuriating is that there has been research linking certain flame-retardants to cancer since the 1970s in credible peer-reviewed scientific journals, yet both our government and industry refuse to do the right thing and look out for our health. Although some chemicals have been banned over the past few decades – many flame retardants reports Environmental Health Perspectives – there are still many in our mattresses that we either know or suspect have links to a variety of illnesses.

While one can wait for change, as a consumer we have to act now to get these products – which are continually emitting harmful toxins into our homes and bodies – out of our homes and replaced with safer ones. There are numerous safe products (like non-toxic organic or natural memory foam mattresses) on the market currently that offer us protection from these chemicals and peaceful nights of sleep. We deserve to know that we’re safe and that these 61 chemicals are not making their way into our bodies.

*This list is taken from Bader’s Toxic Bedrooms: Your Guide to a Safe Night’s Sleep. He had a popular memory foam mattress tested by an independent laboratory.

Further Reading:

About.com: Chemistry

Science Mag – Flame-retardant additives as possible cancer

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences– New Thinking on Flame Retardants

Toxic Bedrooms: Your Guide to a Safe Night’s Sleep by Walter Bader

Is your mattress toxic? (Hint: probably)

Celebrate freedom from toxic chemicals and petroleum in your bedroom.

Did you know the mattress industry is not required by law to disclose the chemicals that are in your mattress? Yet we spend almost a 1/3 or more of our lives on our mattresses and usually we are half naked.  Human skin is absorbent so the toxins from flame retardants and formaldehyde in the adhesives are absorbed through your skin and inhaled into your lungs.  Your mattress may be the cause of restless nights or health problems.

DECLARE YOURSELF free from the lack of transparency and demand to know what is in your mattress.  If you’re ready to toss or better yet RECYCLE your old one, you can purchase a non-toxic mattress that is free from dangerous flame retardants and has third-party certifications such as Greenguard that verify their safety.   Additionally, you can check the validity of manufacturer’s claims based on certifications for certain raw materials such as Certified Organic Cotton.

A few weeks ago, I was in a national chain store that sells products for people’s backs and I asked the sales staff exactly what was in the Tempur-pedic mattress because of my asthma. They told me it was “proprietary” but that I could be “assured it was safe”.  How comforting and NO THANK YOU!

Your mattress can emit dangerous VOC’s (Volatile Organic Compounds) into the air in your bedroom and your home for weeks and even years after you purchase it.  Some of the short term symptoms have been associated with some mattresses are: rashes, headaches, breathing difficulties and blurred vision.  Other people have reported side effects such as fatigue, nausea, and difficulty concentrating.

In 2006, a study was performed on memory foam mattresses in which chemical emissions were collected over a 96-hour period.   In total, memory foam mattresses emitted 61 VOC chemicals and traditional innerspring mattresses emitted 39 different chemicals.  In addition to known chemicals such as formaldehyde and toluene, some of these chemicals are solvents.  They are found in the adhesives used to bond together mattress layers and wood frames.   A few that were identified are:  styrene, isopropylbenzene, limonene, trimethylbenzene, nitrobenzene, ethylbenzene and dichlorobenzene.   Many of these chemicals are listed as Class C carcinogens or are classified as harmful by the EPA, the California Health and Welfare Agency, and the International Agency of Research of Cancer (IARC).  Yet, we take these mattresses to our bedrooms unaware that our health may be jeopardized because we have never been made aware of the potential risks.

I had a very nice innerspring mattress before I knew anything about the chemicals in mattresses and I used to wake up every morning with a little rattle in my chest and I never knew why.  That rattle disappeared when I switched to an all natural latex mattress.

Over 70,000 chemicals are on the market today that have never been tested for safety and they are showing up in our bedrooms and our bodies.  Fortunately, there is currently proposed legislation to require testing for safety before a chemical is released into the market.  One way you can help is by supporting the Safe Chemicals Act of 2010 through the Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families organization.

If you want to know more about mattresses, we invite you to attend our next workshop called, “What is a healthy mattress and how to shop for a mattress” this Saturday, July 10th at 9:30 am at New Living at 6111 Kirby Drive,  RSVP to jennifer@newliving.net  713-521-1921.

Jennifer Touchet