It's a constant worry, especially at this time of year when I am buying copious amounts of gifts--mainly toys. Of course I want my kids to have a wonderful Christmas morning, but I also want them to be safe. What's a mom to do?
I stumbled onto a website called healthytoys.org that has tested 1500 toys. They have a search mechanism to search for any questionable toys (of the 1500 they tested), and the site will tell you if the toy contains Mercury, lead, Chlorine, or Bromine. There is also a section for "other chemicals." But they only tested 1500 toys. Really? I swear Target has 1500 toys/aisle to choose from! I am disappointed that the sample is so small. However, if you happen to find a dangerous toy on the website that you have in your house, the site is very valuable. For instance, Barbie had 19 entries. Almost all of them were a medium threat containing Bromine and Chlorine. Disney was listed 29 times. I didn't look at all 29 entries, but each entry lists 5-10 toys. Most that I looked at were a medium threat. I hate those odds! I would prefer a constant low threat (low meaning the toys didn't contain any of the chemicals they were testing for).
Disney princesses by Mattel had an entry, as did Disney blankets, backpacks, and accessories. Sheesh. Abrie has quite a few Disney princess dolls!
Did anyone ever have a glowworm? Turns out it's a medium threat. The face and clothing contain bromine and chlorine.
Little People toys? One that we got Abrie for her birthday (Mia and her on-the-go grooming) contains Mercury. MERCURY. And chlorine.
Yet, it's listed only as a medium threat. The hair on the little Mia doll contains 26 parts/million whatever that means. The poodle contains 65. I have no idea if that is a lot. But, I also know that the hair has 237,968 parts/million, and the poodle contains 382,363. Huh. Do I freak out and demand Target give me my money back for selling me a dangerous toy, or do I shake my head, say, "what a shame," and wait for someone to get sick?
Luckily, there weren't very many that registered as a high threat. (One of the high threats was a Hannah Montana jewelry set, so be wary of that. If I were Miley Cyrus, I would be outraged that toy makers were making dangerous toys with my name on them). Most of them were medium threats, containing bromine, cholorine, or both. I did an internet search for the health effects of bromine and didn't find much to suggest that it's incredibly toxic unless it's inhaled. It's found naturally in sea weed, and I imagine that toy makers use it because of its reddish brown color. There are urban myths surrounding bromium, like that the British Navy used to put it in the sailor's tea to suppress sexual feelings. While there is no evidence to support that story, many years ago it was prescribed to men who had penis surgery to keep them "calm." Huh. I have no idea if the website where I read that is credible or not, but there is no denying that many years ago (the website said 35 to be exact) MANY unsafe drugs were regularly being prescribed. Huh.
No matter the urban myths surround bromine, do I want it on my kids' toys? Not really, but I would choose it over lead or mercury, for sure! (BTW, if anyone finds something interesting--and factual--about bromine, please post it. I would love to read it). OH, the website also said that it is used with chlorine to clean pools.
Chlorine is not healthy, but it's all around us--we swim in it, drink it, use it in our laundry, and now I just found out, it's used to make many toys. While I believe that in small parts it does not pose an immediate threat, all of those small parts start adding up when it's used in everything. So, how much is too much? I'm not sure. And I'm not sure I want to know. There isn't much I can do about it, and it will just make me mad and alarmed.
So, what's a parent to do?
*Please note that all of the information came from one website, one study. I have no idea if other studies have been done, or if other safe-toy websites exist.*
4 comments:
Yikes! We have Mia and her on-the-go grooming dogs!!! Well, I can easily ditch Mia because she is too tall for half the Little People stuff (barn, school, house) anyway. What's a mommy to do? I did see a funny post about making slippers out of maxi pads....maybe that would be safe (and soft!) Happy holidays!
gah! Liam got a glow worm for christmas.... he's scared of it though... LOL maybe that's a good thing? :)
About the writing, if you have it written down somewhere, and there is a date on it, then you have all Intellectual copyrights. If anyone takes that idea, all you have to do is show the documented evidance and you will be fine. If you are to worried about it, then have two people read and witness for it, sign and date it then you will be covered forever.
Anna-Liisa
Oh, and that is scary about the glow worm, I always wanted one!
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