The Hartford Courant - December 5, 2007
By KATHLEEN MEGAN, Courant Staff Writer
Just when you had hoped that all of the chemically tainted toys had been purged from toy shelves, a Michigan-based environmental group has troubling news.
Of 1,200 toys tested, 17 percent had lead levels that exceed the federal recall standard of 600 parts per million according to the Ecology Center. The center produced the report, which will be released to the public today, with the cooperation of several other environmental groups including the Coalition for a Safe and Healthy Connecticut and the Washington Toxics Coalition.
And it wasn't just lead that was found. The nonprofit center also found other chemicals such as cadmium, arsenic and mercury in a small percentage of the toys, as well as toys made with polyvinyl chloride, which often contain toxic additives, such as phthalates.
"It's not just lead and it's not just toys made in China," Tracey Easthope, director of the Ecology Center's Environmental Health Project said in a statement. "There is virtually no government oversight on any chemicals used to make any children's products — even those made in the United States."
Easthope stressed that the group is not saying that the presence of these chemicals poses any immediate danger to children. "We are saying that it's a concern because kids are exposed to so many hazardous chemicals for no reason. This is an unnecessary and preventable exposure."
For parents who want to avoid toys containing these chemicals, the Ecology Center has set up a website — www.HealthyToys.org — where the toys are listed by brand or type along with a listing of any chemicals found in them.
Among the toys containing significant levels of lead were the Hannah Montana Pop Star Card Game with 2,000 to 3,000 parts per million in the card case, Elmo's Take-Along Card games with almost 10,000 parts per million in the Red Elmo bag, and a Barbie purple convertible with about 100 to 250 parts per million in the tires and undercarriage.
There's good news on the website too, said Easthope. "Plenty of toys don't have these chemicals in them," said Easthope. "This is a problem we can solve and it's a problem we should not have. It's something parents should not have to worry about."
For example, toys free of lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium and PVC, include Fisher-Price's snap lock beads, The First Years' First Keys.
There is also a place on the website for parents to submit the names of toys that they would like to have tested. Easthope said that the toys that are most often requested will be tested.
Easthope also said that the federal recall standard of lead refers to the lead in paint used on toys. The lead measured by the Ecology Center included the lead found in plastics and in metal jewelry.
The rate of lead found in metal jewelry was especially high with 35.5 percent of the jewelry containing lead at more than the 600 parts per million federal standard.
Sarah Uhl, who is coordinator of the Coalition for a Safe & Healthy Connecticut, said she was "shocked to see how many toys tested positive for lead."
At the Toy Industry Association, Joan Lawrence, vice president for standards and government affairs, said her group cannot comment comprehensively on the research it is studied. The research was not available to them until 12:01 this morning because of an embargo.
However Lawrence did raise questions about the Ecology Center's method. The center used a portable X-ray fluorescence analyzer to identify the composition of the toys. She said, "We have heard there are some erroneous results from XRF guns."
In addition Lawrence said, the mere presence of these chemicals in toys does not necessarily pose a danger. She said it is the issue of whether these chemicals are accessible to children — through mouthing the toys or in play — that is significant.
Scott Wolfson, spokesman for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, said the accessibility of a contaminant is an important issue. For instance, he said, his agency has not recalled lunchboxes that contain some lead in the plastic because it is not released in any way, and therefore does not pose a risk to children.
Wolfson said the national commission "respects and takes seriously information brought to our attention by state agencies and by consumer organizations that focus on additional children's toys that are in the marketplace and may pose a danger to children."
When the agency receives a report like the Ecology Center's, he said it attempts to obtain samples of the questionable toys and test them.
"If our analysis indicates that a child's safety is at risk, whether it be from lead or small parts on a toy, we do not hesitate to call for a recall," Wolfson said.
Wolfson said consumers can expect to see additional toys recalled "this week and in the weeks to come." Such recalls are based on the commission's own investigative work, as well as on reports from the toy companies themselves.
Wolfson said that during the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 61 toys were recalled, with 19 of those involving questionable levels of lead paint. There have been an additional 25 recalls since Oct. 1, he said with the majority involving lead paint.
The dangers of lead and other heavy metals to children have long been documented. Even low levels have been found to have permanent negative consequences for brain function and the nervous system. Recently, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended a level of 40 parts per million of lead as the maximum that should be permitted in children's products.
Cadmium is another heavy metal that is a known human carcinogen. Exposure can cause adverse affects on the kidneys, lungs, liver and testes. According to material provided by the Coalition for a Safe & Healthy Connecticut, polyvinyl chloride often contains phthalates, which have been linked to birth defects of the genitals and to altered levels of reproductive hormones in baby boys.
Dr. Mark Mitchell, who was formerly director of Hartford's health department and is now president of the Connecticut Coalition for Environmental Justice, said that he is concerned about the chemicals in toys even if they do not readily migrate out of the toys because eventually they will be thrown out.
"If they are thrown away in the Hartford area," said Mitchell, "they will be burned and put into the air. There shouldn't be toxics in toys."
Contact Kathleen Megan at kathy.megan@courant.com.
Copyright © 2007, The Hartford Courant
