Parents Beware: Toxic Building Materials in our Playgrounds

The health and safety of our children is one of the most important things in the world, and for good reason. Unfortunately, it has been shown that countless harmful effects of toxic building materials being used in and around the playgrounds that our children play in today are now just starting to show.  Numerous reports indicate that children who play in playgrounds have been reportedly getting sick more often.  Some studies indicate that this is due to toxic building materials that are used in the construction of the playgrounds themselves. These toxic building materials are not only detrimental to the health of adults, but they are extremely harmful to children whose bodies are not fully developed.

Some of the these toxic materials which are still used in playgrounds today include chromated copper arsenate (CCA) which has shown to cause cancer as well as many other ailments, lead found in paint and soil which has been shown to cause digestive issues, hearing problems, brain or nerve damage, etc., carcinogens found in playground sand which has been shown to cause the lung disease silicosis and even malignant mesothelloma, and artificial or synthetic turf toxins which have been shown to cause a variety of infections from the chemical exposure. Although these toxic building materials are still being used in some playgrounds, there are newer, eco-friendly building materials which are starting to replace the toxic materials of years past. These eco-friendly building materials include rot-resistant wood, plastic and rubber lumber, arsenic free wood, etc. which are all a better bet to use in playgrounds than their toxic counterparts.