Recall Alert — Bamboo Plates

 

Earlier this month, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a recall of bamboo plates designed for children’s use because of elevated levels of lead and formaldehyde detected in the product.

Formaldehyde and lead are both toxic if ingested, and exposure can result in significant adverse health impacts. They can also be absorbed through the thin and porous skin, a characteristic of infants and young children. Other reasons why young children are more susceptible to these types of toxics:

• As every parent knows, infants and children put everything in their mouths — food, toys, dirt, rocks, dirty fingers — making exposure more likely.

• Children eat more food, drink more water, and breathe more air per unit body weight compared with adults, increasing the risk of exposure to toxic chemicals in their environment, indoors and outdoors.

• Infants and children grow and develop rapidly, so their organs and body systems are more likely to be damaged by dangerous chemicals. Of note is that most chemicals used in commercial products have not been tested for the potential of harm in children (medications and vaccines are exceptions).

• Compared to adults, infants and children have immature immune systems and lower levels of chemical-binding proteins that help detoxify and rid the body of toxics.

 

A dangerous component of air pollution, formaldehyde enters the environment as a byproduct of modern human activities, such as burning wood and fossil fuels, manufacturing textiles and consumer products, and smoking tobacco. At low levels of exposure, formaldehyde can be quite irritating to the eyes, the lungs, the gastrointestinal tract, and the skin. During pregnancy, formaldehyde is associated with fetal loss, premature labor, and birth defects. Higher levels of exposure over many years is associated with cancer. In any case, it is unlikely that there is a “safe” level of exposure in infants and children.

We’ve covered the hazards and health harms resulting from childhood lead exposure many times previously on The PediaBlog. Kristin Walter, M.D. summarizes it succinctly:

Lead poisoning usually causes no immediate symptoms, but over time, lead causes damage to developing brains, so children exposed to lead (even at low levels) can have slowed growth and development and problems with learning, behavior, hearing, and speech that may be permanent. Adults with lead poisoning are at increased risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, decline in cognitive function, anxiety, depression, and death.

 

Because small amounts of lead entering the body and silently accumulating can result in devastating brain damage — similar to formaldehyde, lead exposure can begin during pregnancy and lactation — the scientific and medical consensus is that there is no safe level of lead in a child’s body.

The bamboo plates that were recalled are made in China by Primark. In a health alert network (HAN) advisory to pediatric medical providers, the Pennsylvania Department of Health (PADOH) advises parents to stop using the plates immediately:

• Primark bamboo plates have been recalled because of elevated levels of lead and formaldehyde. Lead and formaldehyde are toxic if ingested by young children and can cause adverse health issues.

• The plates were sold in the shape of a bunny, a bear, Winnie the Pooh character and a rainbow. The following numbers 6041901, 7981401, 8096001 and 8096002 are printed on the product packaging and were sold at US stores located in the northeast region, including Willow grove, Philadelphia, and King of Prussia, from October 2021 through August 2022.

• Consumers should immediately take the recalled plates away from children, stop using them and return them to a Primark store for a full refund or consumers can contact Primark for instructions on how to properly dispose of the product to also receive a full refund.

• Consider testing children for lead exposure from these and other sources.

 

The recall will almost certainly concern and disappoint parents who choose bamboo plates over plastic ones in the hope of avoiding plastic’s own problems with toxicity in the environment and in our own bodies.

Read more about Primark’s recall of Children’s Bamboo Plates from the CPSC here.

The CPSC also announced last month the recall of Opalescent Angel Wings Headbands made by Hatley USA, after lead was detected in the product and concerns about the risk it posed to infants and young children. Read more about the recall from CPSC here and from the PADOH here.

 

 

source https://www.thepediablog.com/2023/03/15/recall-alert-bamboo-plates/