Are brominated flame retardants in electronics and furniture poisoning your cells?

What's actually in it

TVs, computers, game consoles, and foam furniture often contain brominated flame retardants (BFRs). These chemicals are added to plastic casings and foam to slow down fires. Over time, they escape into household dust. You breathe them in, and kids absorb even more because they're closer to the floor and put their hands in their mouths more often.

Common types include polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), and tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA). Even though some have been phased out, they persist in older electronics and furniture for decades.

What the research says

A 2026 review in Toxicol Mech Methods examined how brominated flame retardants damage cells at the molecular level. The finding: BFRs target mitochondria, the tiny power plants inside every cell that turn food into energy.

BFRs disrupt the mitochondrial membrane, mess with the electron transport chain, and trigger a flood of reactive oxygen species, which are unstable molecules that damage DNA, proteins, and cell membranes. When mitochondria fail, cells either stop working or die.

The review found this pattern across multiple types of BFRs and multiple cell types, including liver cells, brain cells, and immune cells. The damage isn't limited to one organ. It's a body-wide problem.

Older electronics and furniture are the biggest sources. A TV from 2010 or a couch from 2005 is still releasing these chemicals into your home right now. The dust on your shelves and in your carpet likely contains measurable levels of brominated flame retardants.