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PBDEs in the environment
PBDEs are released from items they were added to and enter the environment. They show up in the air, soil and sediments, and are building up in animals throughout the food chain. PBDEs have been found in peregrine falcon eggs, orca whales, harbor seals and fish.  PBDEs also have been found in polar bears in the Arctic, which indicates that these chemicals can move great distances from where they are made and used.  Mostly Penta forms of PBDEs are found in wildlife.  

The levels of PBDEs in the environment have been increasing rapidly since the 1970s.  Environmental levels of PBDEs measured in the U.S. are generally higher than levels measured in other parts of the world, including Europe.

Levels have decreased recently in some European countries that are phasing out the use of PBDEs.

How are people exposed to PBDEs?
The exact way that people are exposed to PBDEs is not fully known. Current research indicates three main sources of PBDE exposures: foods, indoor air and house dust.  Certain jobs may also put individuals at a higher risk of exposure.

Foods. People are exposed to PBDEs through the food chain. The highest levels of PBDEs in foods are found in fish, but they are also in everything from meat (beef, pork and chicken) and dairy products to fruits and vegetables.  Penta PBDE is most common, though recent studies that have tested for other forms of PBDEs also found food containing Octa and Deca PBDEs.

Indoor air and house dust.  PBDEs are not chemically bound to the materials in which they are used, and they can move out of those products into air and dust. This may be one of the ways PBDEs get into our bodies. We may breathe in the particles, touch our hands to our mouths, or absorb them through our skin.

The number of products containing PBDEs in a home or building likely influences  the levels of PBDEs in indoor air.  Levels of PBDEs are 20 to 50 times higher in the air inside many homes than in outside air. PBDEs are also found in dust samples from homes and other buildings. House dust samples collected from U.S. homes are five to 50 times higher in PBDEs than those collected from homes and buildings in Europe. Indoor air and dust mostly contain Penta and Deca PBDEs. 

Certain jobs.  Workplace studies conducted in Sweden suggest that people who work in jobs such as electronics recycling or in manufacturing or disposal of products containing PBDEs, might be exposed to more PBDEs.  Blood tested from these workers contained Penta, Octa and Deca PBDEs.  The Washington State Department of Health and the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries have requested assistance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to better understand how to identify and reduce worker exposures to PBDEs.