If you’re handy, you can also buy something unfinished and finish it with no-voc paint. When furniture is painted, it can give off toxic fumes, so to avoid this, look for unfinished furniture or find products painted with low-VOC finishes (or no-VOC if available, although the standards for “no-VOC” really mean that the item is just “low-VOC” below a certain threshold - but it’s still better!).

Low-VOC paints. VOC stands for volatile organic compound, which are essentially toxic chemicals that are unstable and migrate into the air.Look for cribs and furniture made only with real wood (not engineered wood, MDF, composite board, or particleboard) so that you can ensure your furniture was made without the use of glues and chemicals. Solid wood construction. It’s important to select nursery furniture manufactured from solid wood because you don’t want furniture that’s made with glues, formaldehyde, and veneers.What to Look for When Buying Non-Toxic Baby Furniture That’s why I’ve compiled this guide to buying non-toxic baby furniture. This is one important way you can truly create a gentle nursery for your baby. It’s important that the nursery furniture and other items in the baby’s room won’t off-gas harmful and toxic VOCs and chemicals. Looking past the design, however, what truly matters is safety.

Better crib than room and board