Trouble in Toyland:
Protecting Your Kids from Toxins Just Got Harder
BY TARA TAYLOR
© 2007 by Parents' Press
Reprinted from the September 2007 issue of Parents' Press
The recent recalls
of more than 1 million lead-tainted toys nationwide by two major
toy makers, the first on Aug. 2 and the second a week later,
are no surprise to Charles Margulis, communications director
for the Center for Environmental Health (CEH), in Oakland.
Since the mid-1990s
CEH, a nonprofit agency that monitors the chemical industry,
has been keeping track of how poisons, such as the lead found
in the toys recalled by Mattel and Fisher-Price, find their way
into products marketed to children.
"The government
needs to start requiring companies to start testing (for lead),"
Margulis said. "Until that happens we are going to continue
to see these recalls."
Lead is a natural
metal, used as a binding agent, that is toxic to children. Unfortunately,
it tastes sweet, which is why it's sometimes appealing to children.
Research shows exposure
to lead can lead to learning and behavioral problems. According
to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
any child with a blood lead level of 10 micrograms per deciliter
(10µg/dl) or above been poisoned. (In 1978, the official
toxicity level was 30µg/dl, but research showed that adverse
effects are experienced at the lower level.)
There are no visible
symptoms of lead poisoning at lower levels. Children with poor
nutrition are especially at risk according to the CDC. High exposures
to lead can even result in death. In 2006, a 4-year-old boy in
Minnesota died after he swallowed a lead metal charm that was
given away free with a pair of Reebok shoes.
The federal Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) has been working on phasing out lead
in products such as paint, gasoline, and pipes since 1978. According
to the CDC, in 1978 there were 13.5 million children in the United
States with elevated blood lead levels (30µg/dl or above).
That number dropped to 310,000 kids in 2002 (at the updated levels
of 10µg/dl or above).
The recalls have parents
are left wondering why, if the government has been working to
reduce lead poisoning, is there lead in children's toys today?
Keeping Kids Safe
In the past, the focus
on lead poisoning prevention has been on paint with high levels
of lead used on homes before 1978, when it was severely restricted
by the EPA.
Parents are warned
to keep their children from eating paint chips and inhaling dust
from deteriorating paint (which might be exposed from a chipping
top layer of new paint or construction) that might contain lead.
There are federally funded lead poisoning prevention programs
in every county.
These programs are
a resource for homeowners who have homes built before 1978, by
providing lead testing kits (for free) and lists of contractors
who will help remove lead paint. Lead testing kits are also readily
available on the Internet (www.leadcheck.com
or www.leadinspector.com).
The kits consist of a vial of two chemicals enclosed in a cardboard
container with a cotton swab at one end. When the vials are crushed
and the chemicals mix together, the swab will turn pink when
it comes in contact with lead. These kits can be used on any
item that is suspected to contain lead paint.
"All it takes
is the lead dust equivalent of a single grain of salt for a child
to register an elevated blood level," according to a National
Safety County lead poisoning fact sheet.
Doctors recommend
children be tested for lead poisoning at ages 1 and 2. "Toddler
age is particularly at high risk because they put everything
in their mouth," said Julie Twichell, community education
neurotoxin manager with Alameda County Lead Poisoning Prevention
Program.
But in the past two
years, there has been a growing concern by CEH and the Sierra
Club about items that parents have not been warned about by public
health agencies. Since March there have been at least 10 recalls
of children's products that contain a hazardous amount of lead.
There have also been dozens of cases of lead found in candies
from Mexico in the past two years. In July a Hayward company
recalled hundreds of a popular tamarind candy, Pulparindo, manufactured
in Mexico because the wrappers contained lead.
The number one offender
has been children's jewelry. In May more than 100,000 necklaces
sold at Limited Too and Justice stores were recalled because
they contained dangerous levels of lead. And jewelry sold at
discount stores has become a big concern.
"We are telling
parents to avoid cheap metal jewelry all together," said
Margulis.
The CEH, along with
a handful of environmental nonprofits across the country, has
been working on detecting potential toxic hazards for children.
Last year the nonprofit helped change the way parents looked
at their children's vinyl lunchboxes, when their testing revealed
contained levels of lead that exceeded government standards.
The tests made national headlines, prompting the Food and Drug
Administration to issue a warning to manufacturers. Wal-Mart
and other stores pulled some lunchboxes off of shelves.
Most recently CEH
made headlines after finding vinyl baby bibs being sold at Toys
R Us that contained elevated levels of lead.
Who's to Blame?
While many toy companies
are based in the United States, almost all manufacture their
toys overseas, where agencies like the EPA and the Consumer Product
Safety Commission (CPSC) have little say over production. According
to the CPSC, more than 70 percent of toys sold in the U.S. are
made in China. According to Michele Sturdivan, director of public
relations for Mattel, 65 percent of their toys are made in China.
"There needs
to be a stronger commitment from the point of the company. Even
Mattel wasn't monitoring their standards enough," said Margulis.
And CEH is not alone
when it comes to wanting more government regulation.
"The EPA wanted
lead-free kids by 2010, and I can say that's not going to happen,"
said Sierra Club National Toxics Committee co-chair Jessica Froman.
The San Francisco-based organization is in the process of filing
legal action against 10 companies who failed to notify the EPA
of health risks associated with their products, though they did
issue a voluntary recalls through CPSC.
As it stands, CPSC
can issue a voluntary recall on any item that is determined unsafe.
CPSC encourages citizens to file complaints with the agency if
the product causes them harm. These complaints may lead to a
recall. Companies also can inform CPSC if they wish to recall
a potentially hazardous item.
Big-name toy companies
say that they are doing more to prevent possible lead poisoning.
Mattel, after announcing the recall of 253,000 "Sarge"
die cast toy cars on Aug. 14, said it has tightened control at
their factories. Sturdivan, a Mattel spokeswoman, says that the
lead paint got on the toys after a manufacturer in China subcontracted
out the painting of the cars to another facility.
"We immediately
terminated our relationship with that subcontractor," said
Sturdivan. "We have also suspended all shipments from China
while we check for compliance."
The Sierra Club and
CEH say that while those measures help now, there is still not
enough government control in place to end the import of tainted
toys.
What's the Most
Toxic?
If the recalls, testing,
and government reaction are a work in progress, how do parents
determine what is a hazard to their child?
"Most cases of
lead poising we see are because of paint, home remodels, candies,
and pottery," said Jeanette Nichols, R.N., F.N.P., of the
hematology clinic at Children's Hospital, Oakland. "By and
large, it's paint, paint, paint."
According to Nichols,
the hospital has not yet seen a case of lead poisoning that can
be specifically pinpointed to a toy. That doesn't mean that parents
shouldn't be cautious, Nichols said. "If the paint is starting
to come off, it is time to retire that toy."
She noted that because
of its sweetness, "It's an appealing poison."
Nichols also urges
parents to be aware of what their children put into their mouths,
toy or not, a message that is also stressed by many lead poisoning
prevention programs. "Any source is a concern with us,"
said Alameda County's Twichell.
According to health
care providers and county clinics, it is usually multiple sources
that eventually make kids sick or raises their lead levels. It
could be dust from deteriorating paint plus an object like a
necklace or bracelet.
"We just had
a child who had a Dora the Explorer rolling backpack. We tested
that, and it had high levels. We can't say that it was just that
that made the child sick," said Joanne Genet, manager of
the lead program for Contra Costa Health Services.
In California any
child tested and found to have elevated lead levels is reported
to a county agency which provides outreach and education. Federally
funded medical programs require that children be tested at ages
1 and 2.
Most agencies will
call families with children who have elevated levels of 10µg/dl.
The state will step in and work with the family, even sending
a nurse to the home to find the source if a child's lead level
is over 17 µg/dl. Children are usually hospitalized when
their levels are in the 40s.
Should you take away
all your child's plastic toys or toys made in China? Most experts
say no, but CEH and the Sierra Club say you might to a certain
extent.
"Parents have to be concerned with what their children are
playing with and buying because there is no
way for the EPA to
regulate the companies' manufacturer," said Sierra Club's
Jessica Froman. "How do you verify and quality control the
toys?"
The CEH urges parents
to stay away from vinyl at all costs. "Vinyl is a dirty
plastic that is mostly made with lead," said Margulis. He
also encourages parents to purchase toys that have been made
in the U.S. from U.S-made components, since there are more regulations
here. (Toys marked "assembled in the U.S." may include
parts manufactured in China or elsewhere.)
When parents are suspicious
of a toy, they can use a lead testing kit like LeadCheck®,
which can be found at hardware stores. Kits cost from $8 to $20.
Because of the Fisher-Price
and Mattel recalls in August, Homax Products, which distributes
LeadCheck®, has increased its sales and has created a website
for parents looking to test toys (www.leadtesttoys.com).
"We wanted to get something up so if people couldn't get
it at their local store, they could get it online," said
Homax Products production manager Donald Ham.
And it's a good thing
too. Many independent and small hardware stores have run out
of lead testing kits, though they are expecting shipments soon.
Parents' Press went to three different locations in the East
Bay to find kits. Two stores were sold out, and out of the three
kits purchased, two had been damaged and did not work. The third
indicated probable lead on an older (five years or so) Kick 'N'
Play toy for infants ironically, on the paint used for
the Fisher-Price logo.
|
Check www.recall.gov weekly
to find out about any recalls.