You don't need me or your mother to tell you the world is a very dangerous place. With potential threats looming from international terrorists, road rage maniacs, disgruntled postal workers and drive-by gang-bangers, it's a wonder we even venture outdoors at all. Well, it turns out staying home isn't so safe either. You could be under siege from some of the seemingly most innocuous items in your household. Think staying in your jammies all day in bed, trying on lipstick isn't dangerous? Think again.

You spend almost a third of your life sleeping on a synthetic mattress full of polyurethane foam and other petrochemical materials, covered with synthetic fabrics (such as polyester or nylon) and treated with chemical fire retardants and formaldehyde. Mmm. Comfy. These mattresses outgas over the years and emit potentially toxic substances that you absorb into your skin and lungs which may cause allergic reactions, headaches, asthma and sleep problems.

There are no industry or government standards regarding the chemicals that companies pump into mattresses. The only government requirement is that mattresses must be flame-retardant, which means many mattresses are packed with irritating chemicals like pesticides and formaldehyde.

"Formaldehyde, unless they've changed it recently, is the major component in embalming fluid," said allergist Dr. Dan Tucker. "It kills things. It kills bacteria fungi -- and enough of it kills people."

Tucker said researchers don't know how chemicals in mattresses could affect humans. But studies have shown the body stores many of the chemicals found in mattresses in fatty tissue, including the brain.

"We don't honestly know what the long-term effects (of the chemicals) are," Tucker said. "And (there is) a considerable suspicion that they do contribute to the chronic brain disorders as people get older. The less we are exposed to this, the better."

Having trouble sleeping? Maybe it's time to consider a natural mattress.

Evil PJs

The latest safety problem to affect Chinese goods spread to textiles a few weeks ago when the New Zealand government said it would investigate allegations that imported children's pajamas contained dangerous levels of formaldehyde.

The government ordered the probe after scientists hired by a consumer watchdog program discovered formaldehyde in Chinese clothes at levels of up to 900 times considered safe.

Manufacturers sometimes apply formaldehyde to clothes to prevent mildew. It can cause skin rashes, irritation to the eyes and throat, and allergic reactions. The lesson? Wash your jammies before you wear them the first time.

You're really particular about what you eat, right? Well consider this. The average make-up-wearing woman will EAT two POUNDS of lipstick in her lifetime. Aside from the fact that personally grosses ME out, consider this. Most lipstick contains a preservative called Butylated Hydroxyanisole or BHA which helps prevent the fats and oils in your "plumberry passion" from going rancid.

There's just one little problem. BHA is actually recognized by the National Institutes of Health as "reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen." It is also suspected as a "toxicant" for your endocrine and gastrointestinal system or liver. Why is it still in your lipstick? Probably because the amounts in your lipstick actually do more good than harm. But if you're really concerned about the junk in your matte, gloss or frost, read the ingredients, and seek out natural and organic products.

Plastic Bottle Mutants

Yes, I know. You're supposed to drink 8 glasses of water every day. Just make sure you're not drinking it out of plastic.

Bisphenol A, an ingredient in hard plastics and one of the most common chemicals in the world, may be causing human reproductive disorders. The chemical can leach from the plastic, especially when the containers are heated, cleaned with harsh detergents or exposed to acidic foods or drinks.

Scientists say the chemical mimics estrogen, blocks testosterone and harms lab animals at low doses. A recent article published online in the journal "Reproductive Technology" concluded that people are regularly exposed to bisphenol A levels above those shown to harm lab animals. The article was accompanied by an NIH study showing that newborn animals exposed to BPA suffer uterine damage, which in women is linked to reproductive diseases and cancers. The chemical industry has rejected the results, while two different government scientific committees in Europe and Japan recently decided there was insufficient evidence to restrict the compound. Stay tuned. And in the meantime, only drink things from glass bottles. Stuffed in brown paper bags. Like I do.

A Dangerous Shag

That funky wall-to-wall carpet you've been meaning to replace may be doing more than killing your designer look. It could be slowly killing you.

According to eco-friendly expert and author Michael Bloch, even professional cleaning cannot rid your carpet of a variety of environmental toxins that build up in the pile.

It's reported that 80% of human exposure to pesticides happens indoors, tramped in from whatever you stepped in outdoors. Plus there's carpet glue, room deodorizer residue, stain protectors - anything you spray into the air - all settling into your carpet - and some of it cannot be removed by a standard vacuum cleaner.

Of course, there's the carpet itself. A nylon or nylon and wool blend exposes you to benzene, formaldehyde, ethyl benzene, styrene and acetone - all extremely hazardous substances that are persistent in the environment. Bloch suggests you switch whenever possible to natural tile or stone floors - and if you must have an area rug, choose a natural fiber you can take outside and beat the crap out of from time to time.

Two compounds used in the manufacture of Teflon pans, grease-resistant microwave popcorn and pizza boxes may be contaminating people and animals all over the planet.

The two compounds, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), are members of the perfluorochemical (PFC) family and are virtually indestructible in nature. Of these two compounds' many disturbing properties, the one setting off the most alarm bells is their potential for causing cancer. Studies reported by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have shown that rats fed PFOA were more likely to develop tumors in the pancreas, liver, testicles, and mammary glands. PFOS has been linked to liver and thyroid cancer in rats.

While PFOA is used as a processing aid in the manufacture of Teflon, most evidence indicates that emissions of PFCs during manufacturing and their release from food packaging, fabric treatment, and other products are more significant sources of global contamination than the Teflon-coated pots and pans in your kitchen. Gee, that makes me feel better. Not.

If you prefer to stay home and cook "slow food" like lycopene-rich tomato sauce, just make sure you're not doing it in an aluminum pan. As reported by The New York Times, Cooking in acid solutions (like tomato sauce) causes some amount of aluminum to be leached into the solution.

That's a concern because aluminum has been linked to Alzheimer's disease, the devastating brain disorder that is becoming increasingly common and costly as the population ages. Although there is evidence on both sides, most scientific studies so far indicate that aluminum is a problem in brains already sickened by something else. The thing is, once aluminum gets into diseased brain cells, it could add significantly to the damage. If that's true, limiting your exposure to aluminum woulldn't prevent Alzheimer's, but might slow its progression.

Cooking utensils, along with aluminum foil and trays and soft-drink cans, are hardly your main sources of exposure to aluminum. You'll find aluminum in muffins, pancake and cake mixes, some processed cheeses, antiperspirants and antacids.

Considering the broad exposure to aluminum, if it was the primary cause of Alzheimer's disease, virtually all of us would eventually get it. The fact that only 10 to 15 percent of the elderly develop the disorder suggests something else is the main trigger.

However, if you are paranoid, avoid using aluminum utensils to prepare acidic foods (like tomatoes and fruit), especially if they will cook for hours, and avoid storing these foods in aluminum.

Copper Pipe Nightmare

Are you living in a gorgeous old house with original copper plumbing? Oops! According to Audrey and Marion Ensminger, co-authors of "The Food and Nutrition Encyclopedia," some scientists warn about the possibility of copper poisoning by drinking water which has been pumped through copper piping. If you see blue stains on the surface of your sinks where the water drips from the faucet, it could mean your drinking water contains too much copper, and about twice as much copper may be present in hot tap water as in cold tap water.

Acute copper toxicity is characterized by headache, dizziness, metallic taste, excessive salivation, nausea, vomiting, stomach ache, diarrhea and weakness. Have a baby? Infants are particularly susceptible to the toxic effects of copper in tap water because they drink more water in proportion to their body weight. Luckily for you and junior it's fairly easy to counteract the effects of too much copper. Simply increase your dietary levels of iron, sulfur, zinc and vitamin C. Or change the plumbing and get rid of the old copper pipes.

Menacing Plastic Wrap

One of the urban legends floating around is that reheating your plastic wrap-covered leftovers in the microwave could produce dangerous dioxins all over your food.

Dioxins and dioxin-related compounds are pollutants that mainly enter the environment (and food supply) as industrial by-products.

Studies have shown that dioxins may be released into the atmosphere when chlorinated plastics such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC - which is a component of some plastic wraps and food packaging) are incinerated at high temperatures, but there is no research demonstrating that dioxins are produced when the same plastics are heated in a microwave oven. Having said that, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, chemical components can indeed "migrate" from plastics into food at "microwaving" temperatures. However, there is scant evidence to date, says the agency, that such contaminants pose a serious threat to human health.

If you're still skeptical, do what food safety experts recommend: only use plastic containers or packaging labeled "Microwave Safe" and if you do use plastic wrap in the m-wave, don't allow it to come into direct contact with your food.