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What surprises are in your furniture?  Upholstered furniture has many layers and nasty toxins can be found in each of them.  Fabrics, fillings, foams and fixatives can all contain toxic volatile organic compounds (VOCs).  The wood used to build the frames of upholstered items can also come from old-growth forests or other protected eco-systems.

When buying new upholstered furnishings, you want the pieces to have a big impact on your room not the environment.  Look for products made with materials that will be kind to your home and the earth.

First choose furniture made from wood that is FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified or rapidly renewable (like bamboo) and non-toxic glues.  Make sure that they are finished with low or no-VOC paints and stains.  Those comfy cushions should be stuffed with either natural latex foam or organic cotton batting.  Finally try to get pieces finished in an eco-friendly fabric like organic cotton, organic hemp, silk, linen, organic wool,  recycled polyester, or bamboo fiber.

Buying products made from FSC certified wood ensures that the wood was sustainably harvested from a responsibly managed forest.  Formaldehyde (which is used in many adhesives) and polyurethane (found in many foams, paints, varnishes, and sealers) are both common VOCs found in upholstered furniture.

The toxic gasses that emit from these VOCs can cause irritation of the eyes, nose, throat, headaches, fatigue and dizziness. Long-term exposure can also prompt more chronic conditions and diseases like asthma, hypersensitivity pneumonitis; and potentially even respiratory disease, heart disease and cancer.

An EPA study found that levels of about a dozen harmful VOCs to be 2 to 5 times higher inside homes than outside.

I love Verde Home's (www.Verdehomeinc.com) eco-friendly collection of rugs, furniture, accessories items.  They have amazing upholstered furniture in luxurious sustainable fabrics.