About HealthyToys.org
Rating System for HealthyToys.org
To establish levels considered low, medium, or high for the chemicals of concern, HealthyToys.org consulted existing voluntary toy standards, as well as mandatory toy, packaging, electronics, and vehicle standards. HealthyToys.org also evaluated recent state and federal legislation regulating children's products. The levels are not intended to correspond to levels known to cause health effects. Rather, they are meant to provide a relative measure of the level of the chemical on or near the toy's surface.
Chemical |
Low/Non-detect Level |
Medium Level |
High Level |
Lead |
Non-detect to 40 ppm |
41 ppm to 599 ppm |
600 ppm or |
Cadmium |
Non-detect to 40 ppm |
41 to 100 ppm |
Above 100 ppm |
Mercury |
Non-detect to 40 ppm |
41 to 100 ppm |
Above 100 ppm |
Arsenic |
Non-detect to 40 ppm |
41 to 100 ppm |
Above 100 ppm |
Chlorine/PVC |
Under 10,000 ppm |
Over 10,000 ppm |
|
Bromine |
Non-detect to 1,000 ppm |
|
Above 1,000 ppm |
|
|
|
|
Antimony |
If antimony was detected at 100 ppm or above, it was noted |
|
|
Tin |
If tin was detected at 100 ppm or above, it was noted |
|
|
Chromium |
If chromium was detected at 100 ppm or above, it was noted |
|
|
Note: "ppm" represents parts per million.
Note: HealthyToys.org ratings do not provide a measure of health risk or chemical exposure associated with any individual toy or children's product, or any individual element or related chemical. HealthyToys.org ratings only provide a relative measure of high, medium, and low concentrations of several hazardous chemicals or chemical elements in a toy or children's product in comparison to criteria established in the site methodology.
Rationale for assigned levels
Lead
Although no amount of lead is safe for children, the American Academy
of Pediatrics has recommended a maximum of 40 ppm of lead in children's
products. Toys that tested below this level, including non-detects,were
assigned a LOW level of lead.
Toys with lead levels above 40 ppm but below 599 ppm were assigned a MEDIUM
level. U.S. and European Union packaging standards limit lead to an upper
limit of 100 ppm in packaging. There is a proposed rule in Canada to limit
lead in children's toys that can be put in the mouth to 90 ppm. Current
U.S. regulations limit lead in paint on children's toys to 600 ppm (Code
of Federal Regulations 2007). As of February 2009, products containing
a concentration of lead - both in the paint and in the product itself - greater
than 600 ppm shall be listed as banned hazardous substances. This limit
shall be lowered to 300 ppm as of August 2009 and 100 ppm as of August
2011. Electronic toys in the United States are exempt from the lead ban,
though this is subject to change by the Consumer Product Safety Comission (CPSC) as technology improves (CPSIA
2008).
Toys with lead levels at 600 ppm or higher were assigned a HIGH level.
Note: The European toy standard EN 71 (for migration from toys) is 90
ppm. The U.S. voluntary toy standard ASTM F973-07 (for migration from
toys) is 90 ppm.
Cadmium
Levels below 40 ppm, including toys with no detectable cadmium, were deemed
to be LOW. Products with cadmium between 41 and 100 ppm were assigned
a MEDIUM level of cadmium. U.S. and European Union packaging standards
limit cadmium to an upper limit of 100 ppm. The European
Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive sets a limit of 100
ppm. The European end-of-life vehicle standard is set at 100 ppm. Products
with cadmium above 100 ppm were assigned a HIGH level of cadmium.
Note: The European toy standard EN 71 (for migration from toys) is 75
ppm. The U.S. voluntary toy standard ASTM F973-07 (for migration from
toys) is 75 ppm.
Mercury
Levels below 40 ppm, including toys with no detectable mercury, were assigned
a LOW level. Products with mercury between 41 and 100 ppm were assigned
a MEDIUM level of mercury. U.S. and European Union packaging standards
limit mercury to an upper limit of 100 ppm. The European
RoHS directive sets a limit of 100 ppm. Products with mercury above 100
ppm were assigned a HIGH level of mercury.
Note: The European toy standard (for migration from toys) for mercury
is 60 ppm. The U.S. voluntary toy standard (for migration from toys) is
60 ppm.
Arsenic
Levels below 40 ppm, including toys with no detectable arsenic, were deemed
to be LOW. Products with arsenic between 41 and 100 ppm were assigned
a MEDIUM level. Products with levels of arsenic above 100 ppm were assigned
a HIGH level of arsenic.
Note: The European toy standard EN 71 (for migration from toys) is 25 ppm.
The U.S. voluntary toy standard ASTM F973-07 (for migration from toys)
is 25 ppm.
Chlorine/PVC
Chlorine was used as a surrogate for PVC plastic in our testing. Products
with chlorine content above 10,000 ppm are very likely to be made primarily
of PVC plastic. Products with chlorine content below 10,000 ppm chlorine
cannot reliably be considered to be PVC plastic. Flexible PVC plastic
may contain hazardous plasticizers called phthalates. Therefore, detection
of high levels of chlorine in flexible plastics was used to infer the
possible presence of phthalates even though the presence of phthalates
cannot be measured directly by the XRF technology. Many toy manufacturers
have been reformulating away from phthalates, but labeling is not required.
Therefore, we must rely on inference because toy companies do not provide
information about the chemical components of their toys, and the government
does not require it, though products containing certain phthalates in
concentrations greater than 0.01% will be legally banned as of February
2009 (CPSIA 2008). Products that we infer are not made of PVC were assigned
a LOW level. Products that we infer are made of PVC, and thus could potentially
contain phthalate plasticizers, were assigned a MEDIUM level.
Bromine/BFRs
Bromine was used as a surrogate for brominated flame retardants (BFRs). Levels of bromine greater than 1,000 ppm are very likely to contain BFRs and are assigned a HIGH level. Products with bromine levels less than 1,000 cannot be reliably assumed to contain BFRs and are therefore given a LOW level.
Other Chemicals of Concern
Antimony, tin, and chromium are among other elements that are
detected by the XRF technology. However, each of these elements can be
present in compounds with widely varying molecular structures and toxicity.
The XRF technology identifies the presence of the element, but cannot identify
the particular chemical in which the element is present in the product.
As a result, it is difficult to draw conclusions about the chemical in
the product. Therefore, the presence of antimony, tin, and chromium
is noted when detected, but their concentrations are not used in the overall
ranking of the product. Antimony, tin and chromium are also used in elemental
form in many alloys (e.g. stainless steel) and many ceramics and glasses
contain compounds of these metals. These materials typically have lower
relative leaching rates under most environmental conditions. However,
children's jewelry made of alloys containing lead and cadmium still
pose a serious hazard, particularly when chewed or swallowed.
Antimony
If antimony was detected above 100 ppm, it was noted on the database for
each product.
Note: The European toy standard EN 71 (for migration from toys) is 60 ppm.
The U.S. voluntary toy standard ASTM F973-07 (for migration from toys)
is 60 ppm.
Tin
If tin was detected above 100 ppm, it was noted on the database for each
product.
Chromium
If chromium was detected above 100 ppm, it was noted on the database for
each product.
Note: The European toy standard EN 71 (for migration from toys) is 60 ppm. The U.S. voluntary toy standard ASTM F973-07 (for migration from toys) is 60 ppm.
Calculation of Overall Rating
The overall rating was determined by the highest finding for the product for any single chemical. A toy with one or more HIGH ratings for individual chemicals would get a HIGH rating overall. A toy with one or more MEDIUM ratings and no high ratings would get a MEDIUM rating overall. To get a LOW rating overall, the toy must have only low ratings for lead, mercury, cadmium, and arsenic, and the product must not be made of PVC plastic.Low Level Rating |
Medium Level Rating |
High Level Rating |
No
detection or low levels |
One or more of the chemicals lead, cadmium, arsenic and/or mercury were found at medium levels; and/or the product is made of PVC. No BFR's present. |
One or more of the chemicals lead, cadmium, arsenic, bromine and/or mercury were found at high levels. |
We also noted the presence of "other chemicals" in the overall rating. If the overall rating includes an asterisk, the product contained tin, antimony, chromium in concentrations above 100 ppm. The presence of these chemicals was not calculated as part of the overall rating because there is less data on the hazards posed by these chemicals, or because the form of the chemical in the product could not be determined. The presence of these chemicals in children's products deserves more attention and research.
XRF detection limits for highlighted elements are as follows:
Element |
Manufacturers Detection Limit Guidelines(1) |
Observed Detection Limits, 30 second samples(2) |
Antimony |
50-150 ppm |
109 ppm |
Arsenic |
10-100 ppm |
1 ppm |
Bromine |
10-100 ppm |
2 ppm |
Cadmium |
50-150 ppm |
62 ppm |
Chlorine |
1%-5% |
2.80% |
Chromium |
10-100 ppm |
39 ppm |
Lead |
10-100 ppm |
5 ppm |
Mercury |
10-100 ppm |
7 ppm |
Tin |
50-150 ppm |
130 ppm |
(1) Innov-X Model XRF Detector. Detection limits are estimates based on
1-2 minute test times and detection confidence of 3 sigma (99.7% confidence).
Detection limits are a function of testing time, sample matrix and presence
of interfering elements.
(2) Observed detection limits varied by the type of material being tested.
Detection limits presented were the lowest levels observed.
