Post by laurasnowbird on Dec 13, 2004 12:55:09 GMT -5
Hey! I've been a little quiet lately, but wanted to share this:
Sunday, December 12, 2004
Children's jewelry might leach lead
Researchers say some items sold at some California stores could cause brain
damage and lower children's IQ.
By ANDREW SHAIN
Knight Ridder Newspapers
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Jewelry sold at some of California's largest retailers
could cause brain damage in children and even lower their IQ, researchers
have found.
A majority of bracelets, rings, necklaces and earrings bought from bigchain
stores leached enough lead to cause minor neurological damage with just 20
seconds of daily contact, according to a University of North Carolina at
Asheville study that will be published next month in the Bulletin of
Environmental Contamination and Toxicology.
Most of the jewelry tested was aimed at children, researchers said.
One ring leached lead at 250 times the federal limit of daily
exposure in children younger than 3. Excessive amounts of lead can cause
brain and nerve damage, particularly in small children.
UNC-Asheville researchers tested jewelry bought at 15 major retailers in
California - including Wal-Mart, Target, Nordstrom and Claire's.
Researchers wiped the jewelry pieces for 20 seconds, estimating that was an
average length of time a child would fiddle with a bracelet, necklace or
ring each day. More lead enters the bloodstream when children put their
hands - or the pieces of jewelry - in their mouths.
A child's IQ could be reduced by 2 points, said Rick Maas, a UNC- Asheville
environmental-sciences professor who co-authored the study, if the child
were to rub jewelry that the government deems minimally hazardous for just
20 seconds a day for a month.
Among the 311 pieces of jewelry researchers tested, 54 percent contained
more than 3 percent lead. Previous studies found dangerous levels of
leaching in keys and plumbing parts containing as little as 1.5 percent
lead.
Researchers looked more closely at jewelry with dull gray plating that gave
pieces an antique pewter appearance because the plating is made of lead.
Among that select group of 62 pieces, which contained 3 percent or more of
lead, almost two-thirds leached enough lead to cause brain damage in
children under 7.
But the bigger concern is that the jewelry will raise a child's blood lead
level, already bolstered by lead found in drinking water, household dust and
playground soil.
"It's a cumulative effect," said UNC-Asheville mathematics professor Steven
Patch, who co-authored the study. "There are some things you can't control
and some things you can in limiting lead exposure."
Researchers say consumers have no way of telling which jewelry pieces could
have dangerous lead levels. Sellers are not required to disclose the content
of jewelry, but at least two chains say they have taken steps to reduce or
eliminate lead items.
Nordstrom began working on making all jewelry sold in the children's
department lead-free last month, a spokeswoman said.
Target said it has asked manufacturers not to use uncoated lead in
jewelry."We are surprised and disappointed to learn of the findings in the
University of North Carolina report," a company statement said.
Wal-Mart and Claire's officials did not return calls before
publication of this article.
The UNC-Asheville researchers recommend not buying lead jewelry -typically,
items not touted as being made of gold, silver or platinum - until
manufacturers reduce the amount of lead.
"We hate to suggest a ban, but a lot of this jewelry is bad," said Maas.
Some in the industry say the findings are alarmist. Jewelry industry
officials are concerned that studies like this one will unnecessarily panic
shoppers.
"Too much of anything could hurt you; it's possible you could eat too much
broccoli and die from that," said Laurie Hudson, chief executive officer of
Jewelry.com, a retail Web site. "I would have a hard time believing that too
much lead content in a pair of earrings or costume bracelet would destroy a
life."
This summer, the Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled 150 million
pieces of toy jewelry sold in vending machines between 2002- 2004 because of
dangerous lead levels. Four major importers halted shipments while talking
with regulators on reducing the amount of lead in jewelry. The recall
stemmed from the lead poisoning of a 4-year-old from Oregon who swallowed a
piece of jewelry bought in a vending machine, the CPSC said.
Retailers are now the targets.
The California Attorney General sued 13 retailers in June for failing to
disclose that some jewelry sold at their stores contained lead exceeding
state standards.
Federal regulators said they are studying lead in costume jewelry sold by
mass retailers. A report is due next year
Sunday, December 12, 2004
Children's jewelry might leach lead
Researchers say some items sold at some California stores could cause brain
damage and lower children's IQ.
By ANDREW SHAIN
Knight Ridder Newspapers
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Jewelry sold at some of California's largest retailers
could cause brain damage in children and even lower their IQ, researchers
have found.
A majority of bracelets, rings, necklaces and earrings bought from bigchain
stores leached enough lead to cause minor neurological damage with just 20
seconds of daily contact, according to a University of North Carolina at
Asheville study that will be published next month in the Bulletin of
Environmental Contamination and Toxicology.
Most of the jewelry tested was aimed at children, researchers said.
One ring leached lead at 250 times the federal limit of daily
exposure in children younger than 3. Excessive amounts of lead can cause
brain and nerve damage, particularly in small children.
UNC-Asheville researchers tested jewelry bought at 15 major retailers in
California - including Wal-Mart, Target, Nordstrom and Claire's.
Researchers wiped the jewelry pieces for 20 seconds, estimating that was an
average length of time a child would fiddle with a bracelet, necklace or
ring each day. More lead enters the bloodstream when children put their
hands - or the pieces of jewelry - in their mouths.
A child's IQ could be reduced by 2 points, said Rick Maas, a UNC- Asheville
environmental-sciences professor who co-authored the study, if the child
were to rub jewelry that the government deems minimally hazardous for just
20 seconds a day for a month.
Among the 311 pieces of jewelry researchers tested, 54 percent contained
more than 3 percent lead. Previous studies found dangerous levels of
leaching in keys and plumbing parts containing as little as 1.5 percent
lead.
Researchers looked more closely at jewelry with dull gray plating that gave
pieces an antique pewter appearance because the plating is made of lead.
Among that select group of 62 pieces, which contained 3 percent or more of
lead, almost two-thirds leached enough lead to cause brain damage in
children under 7.
But the bigger concern is that the jewelry will raise a child's blood lead
level, already bolstered by lead found in drinking water, household dust and
playground soil.
"It's a cumulative effect," said UNC-Asheville mathematics professor Steven
Patch, who co-authored the study. "There are some things you can't control
and some things you can in limiting lead exposure."
Researchers say consumers have no way of telling which jewelry pieces could
have dangerous lead levels. Sellers are not required to disclose the content
of jewelry, but at least two chains say they have taken steps to reduce or
eliminate lead items.
Nordstrom began working on making all jewelry sold in the children's
department lead-free last month, a spokeswoman said.
Target said it has asked manufacturers not to use uncoated lead in
jewelry."We are surprised and disappointed to learn of the findings in the
University of North Carolina report," a company statement said.
Wal-Mart and Claire's officials did not return calls before
publication of this article.
The UNC-Asheville researchers recommend not buying lead jewelry -typically,
items not touted as being made of gold, silver or platinum - until
manufacturers reduce the amount of lead.
"We hate to suggest a ban, but a lot of this jewelry is bad," said Maas.
Some in the industry say the findings are alarmist. Jewelry industry
officials are concerned that studies like this one will unnecessarily panic
shoppers.
"Too much of anything could hurt you; it's possible you could eat too much
broccoli and die from that," said Laurie Hudson, chief executive officer of
Jewelry.com, a retail Web site. "I would have a hard time believing that too
much lead content in a pair of earrings or costume bracelet would destroy a
life."
This summer, the Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled 150 million
pieces of toy jewelry sold in vending machines between 2002- 2004 because of
dangerous lead levels. Four major importers halted shipments while talking
with regulators on reducing the amount of lead in jewelry. The recall
stemmed from the lead poisoning of a 4-year-old from Oregon who swallowed a
piece of jewelry bought in a vending machine, the CPSC said.
Retailers are now the targets.
The California Attorney General sued 13 retailers in June for failing to
disclose that some jewelry sold at their stores contained lead exceeding
state standards.
Federal regulators said they are studying lead in costume jewelry sold by
mass retailers. A report is due next year
