Santa’s Bringing More Lead Toys

By Anastacia Mott Austin

More bad tidings arrived for parents concerned about buying toys with high levels of lead.

The Michigan-based Ecology Center, along with other groups, tested over 1200 toys, most of which are still on shelves to be sold this Christmas season, and found that 35% of them contained levels of lead, 17% of them exceeding federal guidelines. Their results can be found at the website http://www.healthytoys.org, under "press releases."

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that toys have lead levels no higher than 40 parts per million. Despite this recommendation, federal guidelines suggest that levels of up to 600 ppm are okay. And some of the toys tested in this report were far higher than this second recommendation.

Lead poisoning is the number one environmental health hazard for small children. Even low levels of lead exposure can lead to irreversible cognitive impairments, aggressive behavior, and hyperactivity in children.

What’s more troubling is that there are currently only federal restrictions on the lead levels in paints used in children’s toys, not in other materials used, such as vinyl and plastic. One of the worst culprits for lead, children’s jewelry (which is often put into their mouths), has no federal regulations at all.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise, then, that so many toys tested high for lead and other toxic chemicals such as cadmium, arsenic, and phthalates.

One of the worst offenders was a Hannah Montana Pop Star card pack, which tested at 3,056ppm of lead. Even worse, Dollar Store animal figures, which measured 6,700ppm.

Can’t you hear your kids now? "Mo-omm, can’t I pleeease have the toy with a thousand times the safe level of lead?" No? "No fair!"

The Ecology Center also tested for PVCs, or poly-vinyl chlorides (which contain harmful phtalates), cadmium, and arsenic. Excluding jewelry, 47% of the toys tested contained PVCs. Cadmium was found at levels of 100ppm or higher (there are no current federal guidelines for cadmium) in 22 of 764 toys tested for the metal. Arsenic was found in 17 out of 764 toys tested.

"The government is not testing for toxic chemicals in toys, and too many manufacturers are not self-regulating, so we created the nation's first toy database to help inform and empower consumers," said Tracey Easthope, the director of the Ecology Center's Environmental Health Project, to the press. "Ultimately consumers need to compel the federal government and toy manufacturers to eliminate dangerous chemicals from toys."

Other toys making the "bad" list were a Go-Diego-Go backpack, Elmo’s Take-Along card games, and a pair of Circo brand baby shoes (which measured at 1,700ppm).

Parents who are looking for alternatives to lead-heavy toys can seek out manufacturers who consciously avoid lead and other contaminants in their toys. Magic Cabin Waldorf-based toys (http://www.magiccabin.com), and Hearthsong (http://www.hearthsong.com) are two companies who strive to use natural ingredients in their toys.

"Toxic chemicals have no place in children’s toys, period," said Dr. Ted Schettler, director of the Science and Environmental Health Network, to reporters. "Even low-level toxic chemical exposures can have lifelong impacts. Getting toxic chemicals out of children's toys is a moral and medical imperative."