Question from E. from Canada

Any tips for finding safe headphones?

I have decided to look for in-ear headphones since there is less material I might be sensitive to.

I thought I picked out a good pair: Reveal Bamboo Earbuds. They were anodized aluminum, phthalate-free and BPA-free but the cord still had a strong plastic odour.

What questions should I be asking manufacturers in order to figure out if their headphones are low VOC?

Thanks,

(E. from Canada)

Debra’s Answer

Good question!

You are on the right track with your Reveal Bambook Earbuds.

I’m not surprised there is a strong odor from the cord. It’s probably a standard PVC cord that may even have lead in it, which can be absorbed by your skin when you touch it.

The difficult thing is that I don’t think there yet are PVC-free cords for things like this.

The best thing I can recommend for you is to get these bamboo earbuds and then wrap the cords with something. Just any fabric would work to protect against lead, but not the VOCs. Foil will block the PVC fumes so you might use foil tape, or foil under fabric.

I would ask what types of plastics are used to make the headphones, because they are all plastic.

The ridiculous thing is that headphones probably could be made from some nontoxic, food-safe plastic, they just aren’t doing it…yet.

But…Here are a whole lot of choices for headphones made from bamboo and other natural materials, but probably still PVC cords.