The toxic substances in computers don’t just require careful recycling of old PCs, but the dust that accumulates on computers contains potentially dangerous elements from fire retardants (PBDE’s). Says the article:
The researchers claim that the PBDE threat is greatest in North America, where women were found to have the highest levels of the chemicals present in their breast milk, and that PBDE levels are doubling in the U.S population every two to five years. The flame retardants are found not only in computers, but also in other commonly used electronics devices, including televisions and radios.
Frightening the ways in which exposure to toxic substances can reveal itself in our bodies. The article goes on to point out that Dell (and possibly other companies) are eliminating PBDE’s from their hardware.