Some Riverdale/Kingsbridge parents are spending extra time scrutinizing the back-to-school displays in stores this fall after an August study found a toxin banned in children’s toys lurks in several vinyl school supplies.
A Center for Health, Environment and Justice report found that 75 percent of school products contained concentrations of phthalates --–– a group of chemicals used to make plastic more flexible and durable –– that exceed the limit for children’s toys. Phthalates have been linked to hormonal disruption, infertility, birth defects, asthma, ADHD, obesity, diabetes and cancer, according to the Center for Health, Environment and Justice.
The chemical group known as PVC was banned in toys in 2008. In 2010, the Environmental Protection Agency proposed adding phthalates to its “chemicals of concern” list, which would allow it to regulate and study the chemicals. However, the Office of Management and Budget, which has 90 days to approve requests from the federal agency, has yet to finish reviewing the EPA’s chemical action plan for PVC, according to the Center for Health and Environment.
Without regulations, the Center for Health, Environment and Justice says back to school displays are stocked with trendy supplies laced with toxins, such as the Amazing Spiderman backpack, which had more than 52 times the chemical concentration permitted in toy;, the Disney Princess lunchbox, which contained 29 times the toy limit; and the Brown Polka Dot/Hot Chocolate binder, which was made using more than 11 times the PVC concentration allowed in children’s toys.
The study tested 20 popular items in back-to-school displays across the city at Kmart, Duane Reade, Payless and dollar stores. More than half of the supplies tested contained more than one phthalate, the study found. No product included a label informing consumers that the supply was made with phthalates. The plasticizers are not chemically bound to the vinyl, which the Center for Health, Environment and Justice says allows the toxins to migrate from school supplies and into children’s systems.
