Young children are wont to place all sorts of common household objects in their mouths and often suck(しゃぶる)on their hands after touching such items, habits that an environmentalist group claims may endanger children's health. Toys, electronics, and furniture often contain polybrominated diphenyl ethers(ポリ臭化ジフェニルエーテル)(PBDEs), hormone-disrupting(内分泌撹乱物質)fire-retardant(難燃性の)chemicals, which can build up in the human bloodstream and have potentially harmful health effects. After testing 20 mothers and their children, the environmental group found that PDBE levels were three times greater in children than their mothers, raising concerns that children are at greater risk for contaminant exposure.