Health Issues
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Children’s
Vinyl Lunch Boxes Can Contain Dangerous Levels of Lead
Developmental
Problems: Learn the Signs. Act Early
Children’s
Vinyl Lunch Boxes Can Contain Dangerous Levels of Lead
Oakland, CA – The Center for Environmental Health
(CEH) has filed lawsuits against the manufactuers and
retailers of soft vinyl lunch boxes that can expose
children to harmful levels of lead.
The Center has also notified several other
companies of violations under California’s toxics
law Proposition 65 (Prop 65) for lunch boxes with high
lead levels.
The lawsuits and violation notices against
companies including Toys “R” Us, Warner
Brothers, DC Comics, Time Warner, Walgreens, and others
involve many lunch boxes featuring beloved children’s
characters including Superman, Tweety Bird, Powerpuff
Girls, and Hamtaro. The level of lead in one lunch box,
an Angela Anaconda box made by Targus International,
tested at 56,400 parts per million (ppm) of lead, more
than 90 times the 600 ppm legal limit for lead in paint
in children’s products.
“Lead exposure should not be on
the lunch menu when kids’ go back to school this
fall,” said Michael Green, CEH Executive Director.
“There is no reason to expose children to any
lead from lunch boxes. We are calling on these companies
to recall these products and take action to eliminate
lead from their products in the future.”
Initial independent laboratory testing
commissioned by CEH has already found seventeen lunch
boxes with high lead levels, and the group’s investigation
is ongoing. In addition to the testing on the Angela
Anaconda lunch box, tests on other lunch boxes showed
levels of lead between two and twenty-five times the
legal limit for lead paint in children’s products.
In most cases, the highest lead levels were found in
the lining of lunch boxes, where lead could come into
direct contact with food. Lead is known to be harmful
to children even in minute amounts, as it can impair
brain development and cause other behavioral and developmental
problems. Children may be exposed to lead from lunch
boxes when they eat food that has been stored in them.
Handling the lunchboxes just before eating could also
be an exposure risk.
It is not possible to tell by appearance
whether a vinyl lunch box may contain lead, so CEH is
advising parents to avoid vinyl lunch boxes altogether.
“Parents may need to seek out alternatives, since
many mass produced lunch boxes are vinyl or vinyl-lined,”
said Green. “A reusable cloth bag would be a good
alternative.” Parents can find information on
how to test for lead in their children’s lunch
boxes at home at www.cehca.org/lunchboxes.htm.
The CEH lawsuits were filed against lunch
box producers Igloo and InGear, and against retailers
Toys “R” Us, Walgreens, Big Lots, and Ross
Stores. Earlier this year, CEH sent notices of Prop
65 violations to Targus International, DC Comics, Time
Warner, Warner Brothers, Binney & Smith (a division
of Hallmark and the makers of Crayola-brand lunch boxes),
Fast Forward LLC, and Holiday Fair Incorporated. Under
Prop 65, companies have sixty days to respond to violation
notices, after which lawsuits can be filed. CEH expects
to file more notifications of lunch boxes that violate
Prop 65 in the near future.
Photos of the lunch boxes can be found
at www.cehca.org/lunchboxes.htm
.
Test Your Child's Lunch Box
Because it is not possible to tell by appearance whether
a vinyl lunch box may contain lead, CEH is advising
parents to avoid buying vinyl lunch boxes altogether
as we cannot guarantee they are lead free. You can test
vinyl lunch boxes you already own using a hand-held
lead testing kit, often available at hardware stores.
Two reliable and easy-to-use brands are PACE's Lead
Alert (also available by calling 1-800-884-6073) and
LeadCheck (also available online at www.leadcheck.com).
For a visual demonstration of how to use
Lead Check, please visit www.testyourlunchbox.com.
If your child's lunch box tests positive
please call CEH at (800) 652-0827. We can help you interpret
the results and can use your product as evidence in
our ongoing work get the lead out of our children's
lunch boxes.
Commonly Asked Questions
What products did CEH test? CEH has
only tested soft plastic lunch boxes. We don’t
know whether lead may be present in hard plastic or
metal boxes at this time. In most cases the lead is
in the plastic lining of the box, although some also
have lead in the exterior plastic. Products brands that
have tested positive include Generation Sports, Loony
Tunes, Frozn/Ingear, Roundhouse/Targus, Crayola, American
Studio, Igloo, Sanford, Fast Forward, Arizona Jean Company,
JC Penny, Lisa Frank and BVS Entertainment/Animations
Brand/Accessory Network. However, we have by no means
tested all lunch boxes by any of these makers and our
investigation is ongoing.
How dangerous are the lunch boxes
with lead? The levels CEH found in the lunch
boxes are not high enough to cause acute lead poisoning
during normal use. However, if your child is exposed
to lead from other sources, a leaded lunch box would
add to their health risk. Because lead has been shown
to cause developmental problem in young children at
very low levels, CEH believes it is important to eliminate
all controllable sources of lead exposure, including
lunch boxes.
Does my lunch box have lead?
The majority of lunch boxes that CEH tested do not contain
lead, so there is a good chance that your lunch box
may be safe. However, because it is not easy to tell
by sight, at this point the only way to know for sure
is to test the lunch box yourself.
How do I test my lunch box? You
can test vinyl lunch boxes using a hand-held lead testing
kit, available at most hardware stores. Two reliable
and easy-to-use brands are PACE's Lead Alert (also available
by calling 1-800-884-6073) and LeadCheck (also available
online at www.leadcheck.com). For a visual demonstration
of how to use Lead Check, please visit www.testyourlunchbox.com.
Test kits cost less than $5 a piece, and come with instructions.
Both of these brands will turn a bright pink color when
they are rubbed on a surface containing lead. A clear
or orange swab means there is not lead.
What do I do if my lunch box has
lead? If your child's lunch box tests positive,
we recommend that you do not use it any longer. Please
send CEH your positive lunch box so that we can add
it to our investigation and notify other parents. Bags
can be mailed to: Center for Environmental Health
528 61st Street, Suite A Oakland, CA 94609
Please include your contact information, when and where
you purchased the bag when mailing to CEH.
What alternatives are there to
vinyl lunch boxes? CEH does not have enough
information at this time to recommend any brand of soft
plastic lunch boxes. Because it is not easy to tell
by appearance whether a box may contain lead, CEH is
advising parents to avoid buying vinyl lunch boxes altogether,
and to test their lunch box if they are concerned it
may contain lead. A reusable cloth bag or paper bag
is a good alternative.
Where is the lead from? CEH
believes that the lead is intentionally added to the
vinyl (PVC) plastic as either a stabilizing agent or
pigment.
Should my child be tested?
Normal use of positive lunchboxes CEH has tested would
not cause acute lead poisoning. However, if your child
is also exposed to other environmental exposures to
lead such as lead paint, the cumulative effect could
be toxic. A blood test is the only definitive way to
test for lead poisoning.
A child with lead poisoning may not look
sick, but may experience stomachache, poor appetite,
hyperactivity and headaches. Low level chronic exposure
to lead can cause hearing problems, brain and nerve
damage, stunted growth, digestive problems and reproductive
problems (in adults).
This is a small piece that youo might
want to share with your parents.
Developmental
Problems: Learn the Signs. Act Early.
It's time to change how we view a child's growth.
Do you know all the ways you should measure your child's
growth? A child's growth is more than just physical.
We naturally think of height and weight, but from birth
to 5 years, your child should reach milestones in how
he plays, learns, speaks and acts. A delay in any of
these areas could be a sign of a developmental problem,
even autism. The good news is, the earlier it's recognized
the more you can do to help your child reach her full
potential.
Below are developmental milestones by age:
3 Months
-- Begins to develop a social smile.
-- Raises head and chest when lying on stomach.
-- Watches faces intently.
-- Smiles at the sound of your voice.
7 Months
-- Enjoys social play.
-- Transfers object from hand to hand.
-- Ability to track moving objects improves.
-- Responds to own name.
-- Finds partially hidden object.
1 Year
-- Enjoys imitating people in his play.
-- eaches sitting position without assistance.
-- Bangs two objects together.
-- esponds to simple requests.
2 Years
-- Walks alone.
-- Points to object or picture when it's named for him.
-- Begins make-believe play.
-- Demonstrates increasing independence.
3 Years
-- Climbs well.
-- Turns book pages one at a time.
-- Uses 4- to 5-word sentences.
-- Sorts objects by shape and color.
4 Years
-- Goes upstairs and downstairs without support.
-- Draws circles and squares.
-- Tells stories.
-- Cooperates with other children.
5 Years
-- Swings, climbs, hops, somersaults.
-- Says name and address.
-- Can count 10 or more objects.
-- Likes to sing, dance and act.
Talk to your child's doctor or nurse if
you have concerns about how your child is developing.
If you or your doctor think there could be a problem,
you can take your child to see a developmental pediatrician
or other specialist, and you can contact your local
early intervention agency (for children under 3) or
public school (for children 3 and older) for help. To
find out who to speak to in your area, you can contact
the National Dissemination Center for Children with
Disabilities by logging on to http://www.nichcy.org/states.htm
If there is a problem, it is very important
to get your child help as soon as possible. Learn the
signs. Act early.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) has additional information for families at http://www.cdc.gov/actearly
Source: National Center on Birth Defects
and Developmental Disabilities, Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention
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