Canada’s Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq announced new regulations today that further limit lead content in toys, and give the government power to block import and sale of products that don’t meet the new criterion. Toys targeted to children under three years of age will be allowed a lead content of no more than 90 mg/kg (or 0.009%). The new allowable limits will also apply to other products that come in contact with the mouth, including soothers, baby bottle nipples, drinking straws and mouth pieces for musical instruments and sports equipment. The new limit, down from 600 mg/kg, will be among the toughest in the world. By comparison, the U.S. has a limit of 300 mg/kg, which will be further reduced to 100mg/kg next August.

Unfortunately, the new regulations did not include limits on cadmium content, which has been used as a lead-substitute, especially in the production of children’s jewelry. In its Industry Notice earlier this year, Health Canada says, “our risk assessment had concluded that children’s jewelry containing high levels of cadmium may pose a health hazard to children who ingest the substance through sucking or swallowing the product.” Despite that cadmium may be even more toxic than lead, cadmium remains as a voluntary ban (since 19 Oct 2010) while Health Canada works to identify appropriate measures to manage the risk.

Governments have been skirting around the allowable limits for years. Ideally, children’s products should be as totally safe and wholesome as we can make them, right? So why not just completely ban all toxic substances? The answer is nowhere near simple. There are certainly toys available that are toxin-free. But unfortunately they do tend to cost a little more - enough to make some parents cringe, especially when their children don’t play with them any more than they play with a dollar store version.

There’s no question lead is bad, but it’s not an immediate threat. Toys with small parts that could pose a choking hazard are far more dangerous, and yet despite warnings, parents of toddlers frequently allow their child to play with 3+ toys. And for all the excitement about lead content in toys, remember that kids are exposed to lead in all sorts of places. Even walking on a country road is likely to result in more lead exposure than a childhood of playing with toys, because every breath you take potentially ingests lead dust deposited there before gasoline was lead-free.

The problem with lead, like so many other toxins, is that exposure is cumulative. And the threat to children is greater, because their bodies are so much smaller, AND, still growing. So for sure you want to minimize exposure every way you can – and since toys are something they play with every day, lead toxins should be carefully monitored. But there is no need to panic. The ill effects from lead are the result of long term exposure to ingested lead – either from contact with saliva when the child mouths the toy, or if a piece gets swallowed.

So, if everything in sight finds its way to your child’s mouth, you will want to pay close attention to the content of lead and other toxins in the toys your child plays with. But if it would never occur to your child to put anything but food in her mouth, those premium dollars might be better spent somewhere else. There should certainly be a minimum acceptable level to ensure that all children have some degree of protection. But when it comes to haggling over the residual acceptable percentage levels, I’d prefer to see manufacturers required to list the content levels for various toxins and let consumers decide what’s necessary for their child – much like fats and carb listings for food items.

Health Canada Lead Information Package

Health Canada Summary of the Lead Risk Reduction Strategy for Consumer Products