Toxic Toys: Fisher-Price Little People

Fisher Price Little People scare me.  We used to have a ton of them and they are adorable.  However, they are made with a soft plastic (PVC?) which could contain phthalates, or other nasty chemicals.  Mattel, the parent company to Fisher Price does not have a great track record as far as safety goes.  They've had numerous recalls for lead paint and more.

I called Fisher-Price and asked them about what Little People are made of.  They were very vague and could not tell me anything other than the fact that Little People could contain PVC.  I asked several questions and could not get any more information than that.  If you look at the Healthy Toys test results, all Little People soft plastic parts test high for Chlorine, indicating PVC.  PVC is one of the worst types of plastic out there.  After rereading this article, I became convinced that Little People had to go.

Now, this was extremely hard to do.  When I was pregnant with Lucy, we bought the entire set of Little People castle and add on figures just because we thought it was so cute and wanted her to have it.  I had collected Little People from garage sales and had asked for them for Christmas.  We had Noah's ark, the barn, castle, birthday set, van, playground, and more.  Lucy and Julia spent hours playing with their Little People.  I felt bad getting rid of them, and I didn't do it right away.  It took me quite a while to come to this decision.

I started by trying to keep them away from Esther and out of her mouth.  When that didn't work, I told the girls that we had to put them in the basement because they weren't safe for Esther to play with.  I searched high and low for a replacement that I thought would be safe and just as fun for them.  We had some wooden toy dolls and animals, but the girls weren't as impressed with those.  After researching their safety, I was debating between adding some Lego Duplo sets to our collection, or getting some Playmobil 123.  We ended up buying Esther a big Duplo zoo set for her birthday last year, and right after that found a Playmobil 123 set at a garage sale.

Both Duplo and Playmobil are made of sturdy ABS plastic.  I still do not let them go in a baby's mouth, but I feel much better about my children handling and playing with these.  Both the Duplos and the Playmobil 123 have had many hours of use.  After a while, the girls agreed to let me sell the Little People on Craigslist so that they could buy more Playmobil and Duplo sets.  Esther has a big tub of Playmobil 123 that she calls "pay-mo" and gets out at least once a day.  She is getting a couple more sets for Christmas and her birthday.

Our toys are not all completely toxin free, but this was one that had bothered me for quite some time and I just had to do something about.  Especially because Little People so often find their way into a child's mouth, and because they are so toxic, and because they are meant for younger children to play with, they had to go.  We do have other toys that I am not thrilled about, and honestly, we do still have the Little People Thanksgiving and Christmas sets.  I bring those out seasonally and keep them up high on a table where Esther cannot reach them.  I would love to replace those too if I found something suitable.

With the holiday season coming up, are you keeping toy safety in mind?  I have a couple of reviews and giveaways from some great toy companies coming up, so stay tuned!

Smart Mom Jewelry Review and Giveaway

Like I said in my post on Toxins In Toys - Plastics, I'm very picky about the toys my babies have. Our home is not completely free of plastics or toxic toys, but all of the infant toys we own are safe. When we started our toy purge, baby toys were the first to come under scrutiny. Anything that a little one might put in his or her mouth has to be safe! My assortment of baby items includes cloth and wooden toys. I also have a silicone teether, and when my children need a pacifier, we use an all silicone brand. As much as I have researched silicone, I haven't found anything negative about it and feel that for some things, its the safest option. Silicone is a fairly inert substance and does not leach toxins like some plastics do. Aside from baby toys being safe, another thing to think about is the jewelry mom wears that a baby might try to mouth.

Smart Mom Jewelry includes donut shaped necklaces and bangles that are made of silicone. The silicone is non-toxic, latex-free, food-safe, and even dishwasher friendly. They use only the highest quality phthalate-free and federally approved silicone. Smart Mom Jewelry is a safe option for mom to wear and safe for baby to teeth on.

I received a donut shaped pendant and two bangles in coordinating colors to review. They have a great variety of colors, which made it hard to choose! I eventually decided on the turquoise pendant and turquoise and onyx bangles. The jewelry is sturdy and thick, a great size for baby to grasp and teeth on. I like that the necklace has a breakaway clasp so that if baby pulls on it to hard it will release. The necklace would also be very easy to adjust but pulling the cord through the clasp and shortening it, although I left mine long so its easy for a baby to grasp while nursing.

Smart Mom Jewelry has conveniently packaged gift sets, keychains, heart shaped necklaces, or you can even design your own gift set. If you're interested in trying Smart Mom Jewelry for yourself, they've graciously offered one reader a gift set of your choosing. I won't make you go to their website and choose a color, that's just too hard (there are too many fun options). :) Leave a comment on this post and let me know the name of your little one who would enjoy playing with this jewelry while you wear it. Be sure to include your email address so that I can contact a winner.

For an extra entry, become a follower of my blog and let me know you did so/ do so already in a comment. You can gain another entry by blogging about the giveaway including both a link to Smart Mom Jewelry and my blog. Come back here and leave a comment with the link to your blog post.

I'm going to close the giveaway on January 4 at midnight. If you can't wait that long or would like to give Smart Mom Jewelry to someone on your Christmas list, Moonstone pendants are on sale for 50% off this month while supplies last! Happy Shopping.

**Thanks for your interest. The giveaway is now closed and PisecoMom has been chosen by random.org as the winner.**

Toxins In Toys: Plastics

This month I've been posting about Toxins In Toys and some of the changes our family has made over the past few years. We've talked about lead and where it hides. Today I want to focus on plastics a bit. There are several potential issues with plastic toys - Bisphenol A (BPA), phthalates, PVC, and more.

Bisphenol A is an endocrine disrupting hormone - a developmental, neural, and reproductive toxin. Very low doses of BPA exposure have been linked to cancers, impaired immune function, early onset of puberty, obesity, diabetes, and hyperactivity among other problems. Exposure to BPA is widespread - it has been found in the urine of 95% of people tested in studies. Alarmingly, the median level of BPA in humans is higher than the level that causes adverse effects in animal studies. (information from an Environment California report)

Bisphenol A is found in hard clear plastics and has been in the news quite a bit for its presence in baby bottles, sippy cups, and the lining of canned foods. BPA can also be found in many toys including teethers and toys that infants may mouth. Although many newer toys are BPA free, anything you already have or purchase used should be suspect. We had to toss some rattles (things with the clear hard plastic parts on them) and baby toys that had BPA in them. I also have to wonder, even if plastic toys are now marketed as BPA free, what do they contain instead?

Phthalates are a human carcinogen, added to soft plastics to keep them pliable. Think teethers, bath toys, vinyl books... PVC often contains lead and phthalates and is the least recyclable plastic posing numerous health and environmental concerns. Phthalates in children's products are being phased out due to the CPSIA regulations.

Although the new CPSIA laws are aimed at making toys safer for children, the bottom line is that so many times I look at a toy and just don't know what's in it. Honestly there have been stays of enforcement on the CPSIA laws and I can't quite figure out which thing is banned and when. Many manufacturers are also selling off old products that will no longer be safe at a certain point when laws go into effect, but are okay to be sold now. Have you noticed the rubber ducks everywhere, packaged in with other toys and gift baskets? I got an Oriental Trading Company catalog recently and they had an enormous lot of rubber duckies for some insanely cheap price. No thanks.

I can go to the effort to contact every manufacturer (and I have quite often done so) and figure out whether or not my particular toy contains BPA, phthalates, or PVC, but more and more we are simply choosing natural toys that we know are safe. Toys are not labeled "contains BPA", nor are they required to be. Manufacturers aren't required to tell you what is in a toy and will sometimes reply to an inquiry with something along the lines of claiming that their toy doesn't leach BPA, or is non-toxic, or is compliant with government regulations at this time. Wording meant to creatively skirt the questions.

Plastics are petroleum based and are filling up our landfills and oceans. They are rarely recyclable and often break easily. Natural toys are much more durable, and often more open ended in their play options (no batteries, flashing lights, etc). Although natural toys can be more expensive, we have been focusing on purchasing one high quality item instead of several inexpensive toys that won't last long. Our house is small as it is, so limiting what comes into our home is a necessity. We do have some plastics - Lego is a reputable brand and uses a safer type of plastic, Green Toys uses recycled milk jugs to make their sturdy toys, and yes, we do have some (toxic) Little People just because the girls love to play with them. I have a basket of baby toys and these are all natural wooden or cloth toys. Here is a great article about natural toys.

As far as toy safety, I purchase toys from manufacturers that I trust. I don't necessarily trust the "natural" toys that are popping up at large retail stores. Just because something is made of wood doesn't make it safe. What type of glue holds it together? What type of paint is used on it? I look for a water based stain that shows the wood grain rather than a thick coating of paint that could be toxic or peel off. Things like art supplies, music, and books can still be purchased at super stores. Try thinking outside the box and invest in a zoo membership, aquatic center pass, museum gift certificate, or make a coupon book of visits to the park. The saying is true - homemade gifts are often the best. I've posted a few ideas for homemade toys on my blog and you can find more by searching the internet.

I hope this gets you started thinking about safe toy choices for your families. I have a couple more reviews and discount codes coming up, so stay tuned!

Star Bright Kids Company - Review and Discount Code

This month we're focusing on Toxins In Toys - what some of the dangers are and how to choose safer toys for your families. In our quest for high quality natural toys we've come across some great toy companies. Star Bright Kids Company is one of them! They carry a great selection and focus on natural, educational, eco-friendly, and European toys. You can read more here about how they select the products that they carry. They require safety statements from all of their vendors and are thoughtful about what they choose to sell. You can see those statements and information about each of the brands they sell here. Browsing the Star Bright Kids Company website, I saw quite a few of the toys that we own (and love).

Lucy and Julia got to review the Beleduc Moringa Lacing Tree. I chose this toy because of the creative possibilities it offers. Lucy is very into puzzles and is great at them, but something like this where the pieces don't have an exact spot challenges her thinking a bit. She has had some practice with regular lacing cards, so already knew the basic idea of how to "sew" the pieces on. With some help, Julia figured it out as well. Here the girls are showing Grandpa and Grandma their new toy:

The lacing tree comes with two long strings, so both girls were able to play at the same time. The strings have a little wooden knob on one end - whoever thought of that is a genius (or a mom)! I'm always putting a bead on one end or tying knots in strings for the girls, but these are all ready to go. The pieces are adorable and include a bird's nest, mommy bird, squirrel, fox, butterflies, lots of leaves, and more. Here is their finished product:

And a closer look (the pile at the top was Julia's hard work):

Lucy, Julia and I give this fun toy two thumbs up! If you're interested in shopping for this or any of the other wonderful things that Star Bright Kids Company carries, they've given us a discount code good for 10% off your order. The code is "IAEP68HB" and is good through 1/31/2010. Thanks Star Bright Kids Company!

More About Lead, Safe Jewelry, and a Giveaway

I'm currently running a series of posts about Toxins In Toys. In my latest post, we talked about lead - where its found and more. I am subscribed to a recall email list and one of the things that I see recalled frequently because of lead is children's jewelry. Most of it is off brand jewelry that I wouldn't consider safe anyway, but the recalls do include some brand names such as American Girl, and Reebok. The Reebok bracelet was actually recalled because a four year old boy swallowed the heart shaped charm and then died of lead poisoning. The CDC has a report on the incident here. Here is a list of children's jewelry recalls.

As a mom of two little girls who love to dress up and be pretty, I'm definitely concerned about this issue. My girls do not have metal jewelry right now. Aside from the lead issue, I would also be concerned about charms coming off and posing a choking hazard to the new baby or little ones that visit our household. They do each have a special amber necklace that they can wear when they want to. They get so many compliments on their necklaces when they are wearing them, and the necklaces are a safe option for many reasons.

Amber is interesting in that it is not actually a stone, it is a fossilized tree resin, and has been used historically as a remedy for many ailments. When wearing a piece of amber jewelry, your skin warms the amber and it releases trace amounts of succinic acid which your body absorbs. Amber is credited for pain relief, restoring energy, strengthening the body's immune system, and more. You can read more about the benefits here. Personally, I'm undecided on how effective wearing amber is, but it certainly can't hurt. Its a natural substance, and looks great besides!

Inspired by Finn is a great little shop that sells amber jewelry. They sent us an amber necklace and bracelet for review. Here is a picture of Lucy with the necklace on:

We chose the light mix round bead necklace in 13 inches. The lighter colors are supposed to have more of the succinic acid. The string the necklace is made of is designed to stretch or even break if necessary. Each piece of amber is individually double knotted on the strand so that if the necklace does break you won't have little pieces flying everywhere. Lucy is very proud of her amber necklace and I can tell she feels very pretty when she's wearing it.

The bracelet that we received was for my mother in law. She has constant pain in her arms, neck, and shoulders from arthritis and other spinal problems. I asked her to wear the bracelet for a couple of weeks and let me know what she thought.

She said that the bracelet was somewhat helpful. She felt that it helped with the pain, although it was hard to tell. On a day where she did something strenuous and was in more pain, the bracelet didn't do much, but it did seem to help with everyday low level pain management. She's been wearing it every time I see her lately, so I it must be helping.

Its definitely interesting to read about the benefits of amber. I love these necklaces as a safe option for children's (and mommy!) jewelry. (Note: due to CPSIA regulations, the jewelry is recommended for ages 3 and up.) Inspired by Finn sells amber necklaces in adult and youth sizes, earrings, and more. As a side note, they have a huge selection of baby legs at a great price. (I have this organic wool pair for the new baby and they are so soft and nice.)

Inspired by Finn is offering one reader a necklace! If you'd like to enter the giveaway leave a comment on this post including your email address. The winner will be able to choose any necklace smaller than 16 inches. If you can't wait and would like to do some holiday shopping, you can use the code "blog" for 20% off. For extra entries, you can blog about this giveaway and leave the link in a comment, become a follower of my blog (or say that you already are), or both. The giveaway will close on December 11 at midnight.

Thanks for stopping by. Stay tuned for more on toy safety, toys reviews, and giveaways coming up soon.

**The giveaway is now closed. Random.org chose comment #13. Thanks for your interest!**

KidBean.com Product Review and Giveaway

This month I've been posting about Toxins In Toys and talking about some of the choices our family is making regarding toys. With our switch to natural safe toys, we've found some wonderful toy companies that have great high quality products. One of the stores that I've been impressed with is KidBean. They thoroughly research every company and product they sell, and will even tell you why they don't carry certain products. Here is a quote from their about us page:

"You can find natural, organic, earth-friendly children's products, like wooden toys and organic cotton baby clothes at hundreds of online retailers and an increasing number of local stores. However, you may notice that most of these products are made overseas from foreign components (such as organic cotton clothing made in India from Indian-grown organic cotton or wooden toys made in China or Germany). Were the workers who made them treated fairly? Which organic certification do they have (GOTS, CU, or..?)? What is the impact of their packaging? Are all the ingredients really safe?"

I love the questions they are asking! KidBean is a vegan company and very concerned about being green in every way they can. Just looking at the list of green things that they do at their office is inspiring. Also inspiring is the story of how the company started - a passionate mom wanting to stay home with her new baby girl, determined to start a business that sold earth-friendly, labor-friendly, vegan products. Today they are a thriving business with well over 750 products in numerous categories.

KidBean's toy selection consists of all wooden toys made here in the US. They focus on simple, open-ended toys that feed your child's imagination. The toys are all guaranteed to be lead free. Lucy and Julia had the chance to review the Uncle Goose Antics Ant Blocks recently.

Uncle Goose blocks are handcrafted in Michigan from basswood. They use child safe non-toxic ink on the blocks. The Antics Ant Blocks set has 16 blocks with ant trails, a queen ant and her eggs, little ant hill entrances, and even a spider. We are going to be studying ants as part of our My Father's World homeschool curriculum in a few weeks, so I thought this would be a fun set to have. I like the open-endedness of being able to create unique ant trails each time. It was actually not as challenging as I thought it would be since all of the pieces fit together in any way. Ross did point out that the ants were headed in certain directions and Lucy and I had them crashing into each other because we hadn't noticed that detail.

The girls both enjoyed playing with the blocks. Julia pointed to a couple of ants and said "maybe these are the friends and these are the mommy and daddy." In the photo she's yelling something about her king falling off the steps. Lucy had fun making a trail of ants running away from the spider and into one of the ant hill openings. The blocks are a nice big size - 1 3/4". We also received a sturdy canvas drawstring bag perfect for storing the blocks in. I'm not sure why, but they actually liked putting the blocks away in the bag - they normally don't do well cleaning up. Lucy and Julia give this toy two thumbs up for sure. The next morning after we had been playing with the blocks, Julia went straight to the closet and pulled them out again.

KidBean is giving away one set of Uncle Goose Blocks, your choice! (excluding the wagon) Uncle Goose makes a great selection of blocks including many other languages, bugs, and more. Visit KidBean and tell me what set you would choose. While you're there, check out their other great categories - bedding, clothing, diapers, and more. Leave a comment on this post being sure to include your email address. I'll close the giveaway on Dec 11 at midnight and use random.org to select a winner.

**The giveaway is now closed and a winner has been contacted. Thanks for your interest!**

Toxins In Toys: Lead

This month I'm doing a series of posts called Toxins In Toys where I will be talking about toxins including lead, phthalates, BPA and more. I will also include some reviews and giveaways from our favorite safe toy stores. With Christmas approaching, its especially important to take a moment to think about the safety of toys that your children are playing with and the new things that you bring into your home.

Everyone knows that lead is a huge safety concern. Children are routinely screened for lead poisoning, and most people are aware of the dangers. Lead poisoning can cause developmental delays, poor attention span, weight loss, anemia, and more. When thinking of lead poisoning, old paint, lead pipes, and soil contamination come to mind - but what about your child's favorite Thomas the train engine or plastic Dora figure? There have been literally millions of toys recalled lately for lead issues. I'm glad they are being recalled, but is every toy out there being tested? How many toys do I have in my home that could have lead in them? What if I have a toy that is recalled? I'm left with a $5 voucher for a new toy, and a child with lead in his or her system. At the bottom of the recall notices you can read "What to do if you have a recalled toy - take the toy immediately away from your child and contact such and such company for a replacement." Really? That's all?

Recently researchers have realized that even low levels of lead can have significant effects on children. The "safe" level today is much lower than it was in the past, and recent studies have shown that there is no safe dose of lead, it is highly toxic to the body. Lead exposure is of greatest concern when children are young enough that they are putting toys in their mouths. Even an older children can ingest lead by handling a toy and then putting his hands to his mouth to eat something.

There are two types of lead - surface lead and embedded lead. Surface lead for toys is regulated by the Consumer Products Safety Commission at no more than 600 parts per million. There are no regulations for non toy products however. Embedded lead is injected into plastic or vinyl as a stabilizer and at this point I am unclear as to whether or not that is regulated with the new CPSIA laws. Lead can be found painted on wood, fabric, and plastic, or injected into plastic and vinyl. Yellow and red colors are the most likely to have lead added to them as it makes the colors brighter.

Mega Blocks are one example of embedded lead - the yellow blocks were found to have lead in them. There was some controversy about the type of testing done and the blocks have not been recalled. You can read an article about this here.

Here is a good article about lead in toys from Sara's Toy Box.

Check the CPSC website for recalls and subscribe to their email list to be notified about recalls as the occur.

Healthy Stuff has tested toys, you can search their database to see if a toy you are looking for has been tested.

What struck me in looking through the recall notices is that these are toys I would buy and could easily have in my home. In later posts I will talk more about what our family has chosen to do in response to this information. In general though, we tend towards toys that are made of natural substances and from safe reputable companies. Hopefully this gets you started thinking about the toys in your home. Keep reading for more about toxins in toys.

(Note: the Dora and Elmo toys pictured in this post have both been recalled.)