Your Kids Might Be Playing On Toxic Chemicals

BY PANDORA DEWAN ON 6/6/23 AT 8:00 AM EDT

The safety of recreational outdoor flooring is rarely discussed. But, according to scientists, your kids might be playing on a bed of toxic chemicals.

Environmental toxicologist Genoa Warner studies the impact of environmental chemicals on the human body at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. "My life collided with my research when my town decided to look into putting artificial turf on the playing fields in the park about a quarter of a mile away from my house, where I take my kids to play," Warner told Newsweek.

In August 2022, Warner and her colleague, Maire Murphy, published a paper in the Journal of Environmental Pollution summarizing the impacts of artificial turf on human health.

Artificial turf and playground surfaces contain potentially hazardous chemicals, but more research is needed to understand their effect. DMYTRO VARAVIN/GETTY

"I found it striking that very little health research has been done," Warner said. "We just have not widely studied the health impacts of installing artificial turf in communities and there needs to be more research.
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Read the full article from Newsweek here.