The Environmental Working Group commissioned the study which included four mother-daughter pairs. It found in their bodies an average of 35 chemicals like flame retardants and stain-proof coatings. 17- year old Heather Gellert was a participant:

 “Finding that the chemicals , the carcinogenic chemicals that were found are present in my body, it’s sickened me.”

Gellert supports legislation that would create a statewide system of testing for chemicals – so-called biomonitoring.  Its authors say it will help discover how exposure to toxic chemicals impacts diseases like cancer. But opponents claim it would cause panic, and say knowing which chemicals are present would be useless without the proper scientific context.   Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed a similar bill last year.