Infant and Toddler Nursery Built and Furnished with GREENGUARD Children & Schools Certified(SM) Products to be Showcased at ABC Kids Expo

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Oct 06, 2010, 03:14 ET

LAS VEGAS, Oct. 6 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The GREENGUARD Environmental Institute wants parents to know just how easy it is to create a beautiful, functional, healthier indoor environment that doesn't expose their children to potentially toxic airborne chemicals. That's why, at the ABC Kids Expo in Las Vegas next week, GREENGUARD will exhibit a completely redesigned life-size infant and toddler nursery constructed and furnished with GREENGUARD Children & Schools Certified(SM) products and materials.

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Unlike last year's exhibit, this year's GREENGUARD nursery will feature a bigger, more interactive space with more certified and newly-certified products on display, including those from:

Additionally, visitors to the booth can enter to win GREENGUARD's Big Bundle of Joy $10,000 Nursery Giveaway, which will award one lucky grand prize winner $10,000 worth of select GREENGUARD Certified home and nursery products. Five second-place winners will receive a free GREENGUARD Certified Naturepedic® crib mattress, and 30 third-place winners will receive a free GREENGUARD Certified Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaning System.

"Our goal is to help raise awareness among parents about how the product choices they make can have an impact on the indoor air quality of their home—and, of course, how the quality of that air can have an impact on their children's health," says Henning Bloech, executive director of the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute. "Both our $10,000 giveaway and our real-life model of a healthier nursery will help parents see how easy it can be to improve the indoor air quality of their home—without sacrificing style or product performance."

Products certified to GREENGUARD's stringent chemical emissions standards can help create healthier indoor environments for families by significantly reducing the amount of potentially harmful chemicals that those products might off-gas, or release into the air. Research indicates that long-term exposure to some of these compounds can cause asthma, developmental disorders, reproductive disorders, cognitive delays, liver and kidney damage, and even cancer. Short-term exposure can cause eye, nose, and throat irritation; coughing; nausea; headache; and respiratory irritation.

"We shouldn't have to question the safety of the children's products available to us in the marketplace. However, with over 80,000 chemicals in circulation today, we can't be sure that each of them has been thoroughly tested for its impact on human health," Bloech says. "Choosing third-party certified and/or tested products, such as GREENGUARD Certified products, can help take the guesswork out of choosing which ones to buy. Our free online product guide makes it even simpler."

The ABC Kids Expo runs Sunday, Oct. 10 through Wednesday, Oct. 13 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. To see the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute's nursery exhibit, visit Booth 2039.

About GREENGUARD Environmental Institute (GEI)

The GREENGUARD Environmental Institute aims to protect human health and improve quality of life by enhancing indoor air quality and reducing people's exposure to chemicals and other pollutants. As an ISO-IEC Guide 65:1996 accredited, third-party organization, the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute certifies products and materials for low chemical emissions and provides a resource for choosing healthier products and materials for indoor environments. All certified products must meet stringent chemical emissions standards based on established criteria from key public health agencies. GREENGUARD Certification is broadly recognized and accepted by sustainable building programs and building codes worldwide. For more information and a complete listing of certified products, visit www.greenguard.org.

SOURCE GREENGUARD Environmental Institute