The products came from shopping trips to more than 40 retailers including shopping malls, street markets, and chain stores across Beijing, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Wuhan. Shoppers purchased a wide variety of products, ranging from school supplies to clothing to popular products for young children. Some were plastic, some were made of wood, and others included metal parts and jewelry. (Click here to read full test results). As far as we know this was the first publically available large-scale investigation of toxic metals in children's products in China.
To measure the metals, investigators used a portable X-ray fluorescence analyzer (XRF), testing for six toxic metals—antimony, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead and mercury. All six metals are well-known to cause serious harms to human health, especially in children.
The results showed that forty-eight samples (9.6 percent of the products) contained more than one toxic metal, increasing the possibility of harm. None of the tainted products contained warning labels to inform consumers about their toxic ingredients. The toys that tested positive for heavy metals, including lead, were found in every category of product, no matter whether it was branded or non-branded, cheap or expensive. In short, no matter who or where you buy your toy from in China, there is a possibility that a toxic metal is present.
Lead is extremely harmful to children, and yet we easily found products available for sale that tested positive for lead. In China, the regulatory limit for lead in consumer products is 600 ppm. However the study turned up 48 store-bought products with levels exceeding this level. These included dolls, balls, pencil boxes, toy cars, and backpacks. The top five lead-contaminated products contained truly shocking levels ranging from 12,467-120,960 ppm. These included a boy's ring, children's glassware and a doll. A total of 82 products (16 percent of the products) violated a more protective lead standard of 90 ppm used in the US and Canada.
The study found other well-known toxic metals available in popular children's products including arsenic and mercury. Five children's products contained mercury at levels ranging from 39-78 times higher than the regulatory limit for mercury in cosmetics in China. Fifty-two products (10 percent of the products) contained significant levels of arsenic. These included dolls, toy cars, shoes and school supplies.
The Greenpeace-IPEN findings raises safety concerns for children. The metals measured in this study can have a variety of harmful impacts. Infants and children have disproportionately heavy exposure to many environmental agents because they drink more water, eat more food and breathe more air per unit body weight compared to adults; children's metabolic pathways especially in fetal life and in the first months after birth, are immature; developmental processes are easily disrupted during rapid growth and development before and after birth; and children have more years of future life and thus more time to develop diseases initiated by early exposures.
Children's developing bodies are especially vulnerable to damage from heavy metals. Not to mention kids are more likely to chew objects and put their hands in their mouth thereby increasing their expose to any substances in these products. Put simply, toxic substances should not be present in children's products.
The primary responsibility for safe products lies with manufacturers who should ensure that toxic substances are not present. Fortunately, the high percentage of products (67 percent) with no, or low levels of metals indicates that elimination of metals in children's products is technically and economically feasible. The data in the Greenpeace-IPEN study shows that many companies are already paying attention to the toxic metal content in their products. But now it's time for all companies to eliminate them.
Here are three new films to watch this Earth Week that will transport you from pole to pole and introduce you to the scientists and activists working to save our shared home.
1. The Year Earth Changed
Where to Watch: Apple TV+
When to Watch: From April 16
The coronavirus pandemic has brought home the stakes of humanity's impact on the environment. But the lockdowns also proved how quickly nature can recover when humans give it the space. Birds sang in empty cities, whales surfaced in Glacier Bay and capybara roamed the South American suburbs.
The Year Earth Changed captures this unique year with footage from more than 30 lockdowned cities between May 2020 to January 2021. Narrated by renowned wildlife broadcaster David Attenborough, the film explores what positive lessons we can take from the experience of a quieter, less trafficked world.
"What the film shows is that the natural world can bounce back remarkably quickly when we take a step back and reduce our impact as we did during lockdown," executive producer Alice Keens-Soper of BBC Studios Natural History Unit told EcoWatch. "If we are willing to make even small changes to our habits, the natural world can flourish. We need to learn how to co-exist with nature and understand that we are not separate from it- for example if we closed some of our beaches at for a few weeks during the turtle breeding we see that it can make a huge difference to their success. There are many ways that we can adapt our behavior to allow the natural world to thrive as it did in lockdown."
2. After Antarctica
Where to Watch: San Francisco International Film Festival
When to Watch: 12 a.m. PST April 9 to 11:59 p.m. April 18
In 1989, Will Steger led an international team of six scientists and explorers to be the first humans to cross Antarctica by dogsled. Steger and his team weren't just in it for the adventure. They also wanted to draw attention to the ways in which the climate crisis was already transforming the icy continent and to rally support for the renewal of the Antarctic Treaty, which would keep the continent safe from extractive industries.
In After Antarctica, award-winning filmmaker Tasha Van Zandt follows Steger 30 years later as he travels the Arctic this time, reflecting on his original journey and once again bringing awareness to changes in a polar landscape. The film intersperses this contemporary journey with footage from the original expedition, some of which has never been seen before.
"Will's life journey as an explorer and climate activist has led him not only to see more of the polar world than anyone else alive today, but to being an eyewitness to the changes occurring across both poles," Van Zandt told EcoWatch. "But now, these changes are happening in all of our own backyards and we have all become eyewitnesses. Through my journey with Will, I have learned that although we cannot always control change, we can change our response. I feel strongly that this is a message that resonates when we look at the current state of the world, as we each have power and control over how we choose to respond to hardships, and we all have the power to unite with others through collective action around a common goal."
After Antarctica is available to stream once you purchase a ticket to the San Francisco International Film Festival. If you miss it this weekend, it will screen again at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival from May 13 to May 23.
Tasha Van Zandt
3. The Race to Save the World
Where to Watch: Virtual Cinema
When to Watch: From Earth Day, April 22
While many films about the climate crisis seek to raise awareness about the extent of the problem, The Race to Save the World focuses on the people who are trying to stop it. The film tells the story of climate activists ranging from 15-year-old Aji to 72-year-old Miriam who are working to create a sustainable future. It follows them from the streets to the courtroom to their homes, and explores the impact of their advocacy on their personal lives and relationships.
Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker Joe Gantz told EcoWatch that he wanted to make a film about climate change, but did not want to depress viewers with overwhelming statistics. Instead, he chose to inspire them by sharing the stories of people trying to make a difference.
"Unless millions of people take to the streets and make their voices heard for a livable future, the politicians are not going to get on board to help make the changes needed for a sustainable future," Gantz told Ecowatch. "I think that The Race To Save The World will energize and inspire people to take action so that future generations, as well as the plants, animals and ecosystems, can survive and thrive on this planet."
Check back with EcoWatch on the morning of Earth Day for a special preview of this inspiring film!