Your humble abode may be a haven for you and your family after a long and tiring day at work or in school. Unfortunately, your house may be making you and your loved ones sick without you even knowing it. Recent reports suggest that certain laminate floors can increase your risk of getting cancer.
Many homeowners raised their concerns when a report came out on "60 Minutes" regarding a higher than usual content of formaldehyde on laminate floorings from a certain brand, Realty Times reported. It has been found out that U.S.-based company, Lumber Liquidators' Chinese-made floorings had a high concentration of formaldehyde, which increases a person's risk for cancer.
CDC initially reassured the public that the levels of formaldehyde on the said floorings were low and "not significant enough to be considered a danger." However, "60 Minutes" conducted their own investigation and found that CDC's findings were "about three times lower" than it should have been, as the basis was done on an incorrect ceiling height value.
"While laminate flooring from Home Depot and Lowes had acceptable levels of formaldehyde, as did Lumber Liquidators American-made laminates, every single sample of Chinese-made laminate flooring from Lumber Liquidators failed to meet California formaldehyde emissions standards," the report stated.
It was found that these Chinese-made laminates from the said company were "six to seven times above the state standard for formaldehyde." This alerted several homeowners who were wary and concerned if their homes had such laminate floorings installed.
The publication noted that homeowners can get their floors tested by sending an email to the Benchmark International Laboratories.
This, however, is not the only thing that homeowners need to be wary of. As previously reported here on Realty Today, there are other means in which your house can make you sick.
Overlooking your regular cleaning duties at home is enough time for mold, bacteria and viruses to grow. This could lead to certain respiratory conditions and even infection.