Would Products Manufactured in U.S. be Safe from Carcinogens?

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The discussion centers on the safety of products manufactured in the U.S. and whether they are subject to regulatory oversight by agencies like the FDA and EPA. Participants explore the assumption that U.S.-made products are generally safe for their intended use, questioning if regulatory bodies adequately assess all ingredients to prevent harmful substances from being included. A specific example involves vapor barriers used in home construction, where concerns arise about materials like carbon black and their potential carcinogenic properties. The conversation highlights the complexity of product safety, noting that while many products undergo some level of scrutiny, not all harmful substances may be identified or regulated. Ultimately, there is a consensus that while U.S. products are often safe, consumers should remain vigilant and research specific materials, especially when no explicit warnings are provided.
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If something is manufactured in the U.S., is it safe to assume it must undergo some kind of FDA, EPA, etc. safety "test" such that we can reasonably assume it would not have something that knowingly would be harmful to us in its intended use?

Obviously, if you use something other than what it's intended for, then practically anything can be harmful (e.g., you eat glass or plastic for food). But, are there regulatory bodies for U.S. produced products that would examine all the "ingredients" in them and prevent anything that would be known to be harmful to humans to be put in?

I ask, because I have an example of this "theory" in practice. My dad (lung cancer) needs to have a vapor barrier placed in his home (in the crawl space, as the old one has "issues"). In calling around town and Googling, I found that most people use 6 mil, 10 mil, or 12 mil (for non-encapsulation purposes). 6 mil typically doesn't have anti-microbials in them, I was told. That got me interested in what 10 mil+ (the level at which I was told they start to have stuff "added" to them) has in them that is different, so I looked up makes/models of ones used by a company. I got this:

https://crawlspacedepot.com/12-mil-reinforced-crawl-space-liner-wb-roll/
If you click the product specifications tab, it gives this page:
http://archive.crawlspacedepot.com/productDocs/35-DuraSkrim 8-12WB Spec Sheet.pdf
There it says of one of the liners/vapor barriers:

The black outer layers consist of a high-strength polyethylene film containing carbon black. The white sides contain UV and thermal stabilizers.

I didn't know what carbon black was and saw this:
The International Agency for research on cancer classifies carbon black as a possible human carcinogen. Experimental studies in female rats found increased incidence of lung tumors in rats that inhaled carbon black.

Other sources say it is a possible carcinogen.
Animal studies suggest long-term exposure to very high doses of pure carbon black may increase a person's risk of cancer. Carbon black that comes from incomplete burning of hydrocarbons is more likely to contain cancer causing chemicals than pure carbon black.
https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/chemical/carblack.htm

I also didn't know what UV and thermal stabilizers were and saw some Google search result headings/previews discussing whether they were toxic and/or carcinogenic. There were too many results and views to post. I frankly cannot find anything easy enough to understand and conclusive either.

My main question is whether we should ASSUME NO KNOWN harmful substances would be put into products made in the U.S. (w/o a label saying so) for things put to their intended use? Or, do regulator agencies simply not have the scope, man-power, etc. to cover all this stuff and the buyer must beware and research what substances are in products bought (and whether they are safe)?
 
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Bystander said:
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Yeah, that's why I added this qualifier to my question: "(w/o a label saying so)"

For sure, we manufacture unsafe stuff knowingly at times, but those have labels. So, yeah, I understand that exception. But, overall, should we mostly trust that most of the time (...for those wanting a quantifier...oh, let's say 95% or more) that stuff produced here in the U.S. gets an adequate "check" for safety (up to known knowledge/standards - obviously, if we don't know something it's not the regulatory body's fault) and if it's created and doesn't have a label warning of harm, then it's as safe as we know it to be and wouldn't cause harm in intended use?

My vapor barrier example is an actual real life one. I wonder if I'm being silly looking at the substances used in this product that is created here in the U.S. (South Dakota to be exact)?
 
kyphysics said:
I wonder if I'm being silly looking at the substances used in this product that is created here in the U.S. (South Dakota to be exact)?
Yes, because the carbon black is embedded in the plastic. So you cannot inhale it. Now that your question is fully answered, we can close this thread.
 
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