Upholstered Furniture Cushion Fill

One of the goals of this blog is to provide educational information on the various green aspects of furniture and home accessories available to consumers today. Today's topic is the make-up of the internal components (cushion materials) of upholstered furniture.

In order of least eco-friendly to most eco-friendly, the internal components are polyurethane foam, soy based foam, natural latex foam, and wool. Following are descriptions of these materials:

Polyurethane foam, as an oil based material, is the last cushion material that Eco-Living In Style we would want to use for our furniture cushions. Unfortunately, it is currently the most commonly used material, but on many levels it is not the best. Though polyurethane is very comfortable and resilient it is also highly flammable (after all it is oil based). In order to reduce its flammability, manufacturers of polyurethane cushions have to coat it with large amounts of flame retardants to meet the US government regulations for safe household use. So, if the fact that it’s a flammable oil based material and that it must be soaked and coated with anti-inflammatory chemicals doesn’t turn you off, maybe knowing that these two aspects cause a high level of VOC output will turn you against using polyurethane cushions in your furniture.

While it is not rated for carcinogenicity, and no exposure limits for polyurethane have been established by the US government, polyurethane dust which contains toluene diisicyanate can cause irritation to the eyes and lungs and other as-of-yet unmeasured health problems. The chemicals in polyurethane that contribute to indoor air pollution are known to be possible carcinogens according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer. Likewise, the flame retardant known as polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) is commonly used in the US, despite bans in Europe starting in 2004. The problem with PBDE flame retardants is that they accumulate in our bodies, get passed on to our children through breast milk, and may cause liver toxicity, thyroid toxicity, and neurodevelopmental toxicity. It is very important for us as consumers to be on the look out for these materials in the products we buy and avoid them whenever possible.

A good substitute to polyurethane foam is to use soy based foam which blends the petrol-derived polyurethane foams with the more natural and healthy soy foam. Although most manufacturers only blend about 20 percent of these cushions with soy this is a step in the right direction. Soy foam also has a strong odor that manufacturers are working to minimize. In addition, since it still contains polyurethane, soy foams require the use of PBDE flame retardants. So, although it is better than polyurethane we can do better in our purchasing decisions.

Another option for cushion fill is natural latex foam. Latex is derived from rubber trees and is, without a doubt, the greenest option for cushion fill. Not only does it come from a renewable resource, but it's inherently resistant to mold, mildew and dust mites, and is available with or without PBDE fire retardants. Although 100% natural latex is the most expensive of the available components, it can be synthetically produced and blended with its natural version to reduce cost, but this is a less than perfect solution, because it off-gases 4-PC that is a mucuous membrane and eye irritant.

In my opinion the best material to use for cushion fill is wool. Wool is 100% natural, sustainable and doesn’t necessitate the usage of any harsh chemicals in its production. It does have some drawbacks like the fact that it isn’t as resilient as the solid foams and will need to be “fluffed up” to maintain its form.

As a consumer, you are now in possession of the information needed to determine which internal components you want in your upholstered furniture. As the end user, I leave it to you to decide.

As always this is an open post blog site and I welcome any further information, comments and questions.

Signing off until the next post,
Lester at Eco-Living In Style