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Parents should immediately remove any toy containing lead, says Dr. Helen Binns, a Chicago pediatrician who chairs the American Academy of Pediatrics' Committee on Environmental Health. If parents are concerned or if toys are peeling or chipping, she recommends a blood test. The average lead level in the U.S. is 2 mcg/dL of blood. A level of 10 or higher calls for serious action: health officials will work with parents to reduce exposure and check their child's iron, as being low in iron increases the body's absorption of lead. Some city health departments do this kind of workup...
...LeDouxes have certainly gotten their wake-up call. Jade's blood test was fine, but the couple no longer trusts the toy industry--or federal regulators--to police its products. They're starting a small business called Jade's Toybox to sell carefully vetted, educational toys, mainly made in the U.S. and Europe...
Their solution is a three-part safety plan, announced Sept. 5: a federal requirement to make safety testing mandatory; new, industry-wide standards for testing procedures; and certification for independent labs. Keithley says the labs may devise a logo to be stamped on toys indicating that they meet federal standards. Most large companies in the U.S. use both internal and third-party testing, but there is no legal requirement and therefore no uniform method of testing or seal of approval that might restore consumers' trust. For many products, including toys and children's jewelry, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC...
That could change this fall. Democratic Florida Senator Bill Nelson introduced a bill that would require toys to be third-party tested to make sure they meet safety standards-- or be banned from import to the U.S. (Hearings are scheduled for Sept. 12.) Toymakers are supporting stricter regulation in part because "it would create a level playing field," says Joan Lawrence, TIA's vice president of standards and regulatory affairs. Today, the only penalty for failing to meet the standards is a recall, so some companies don't test...
Until the new rules are in place, should parents stick with gifts crafted close to home, particularly if the extra safety measures raise the price of Chinese imports? U.S.-made toys may still use imported parts, but manufacturers have more control over how they're put together and can test them more easily. "On the surface, there is reason to believe they're safer," says John Quelch, a professor at Harvard Business School. However, he notes, every big toymaker that does produce in China is going flat out to avoid the nightmare of a holiday recall. This Christmas could...