Toxic bisphenols have been discovered in 60% of children’s toys and materials.

Stine Müller, project manager of the aforementioned organisation, together with consumer groups from all over Europe, investigated the presence of bisphenols in 121 children’s products, including baby textiles and leather shoes, teething toys, feeding bottles and children’s sunglasses.. Bisphenols were also searched in 58 soft drink and food boxes. The tested products were purchased both online and in stores in seven different European countries. “What we found was alarming,” says Müller in the newly published study.

“Babies use their mouths to explore the world.. However, our research has shown that teething toys, feeding bottles, or sippy cups can expose children to bisphenols when these products are put into their mouths. This contains high-risk bisphenols, which we found in half of the products tested“, To add.

Children are also in constant communication with their environment. baby clothes, blankets, socks and shoes. A wide variety of bisphenols were found in the 69 products examined, some of them high in BPA and its toxic relatives, bisphenols S and F.

In 60% of children’s products and also in soda cans

“Overall, we found that more than 60% of tested children’s products contained or released at least one and in most cases two or more bisphenols. AND All soft drink and food cans tested contained at least low levels of bisphenols in the inner lining of the can. BPA remained the most common bisphenol, but we also frequently found bisphenol F or S,” summarizes the scientist.

How much of a risk do the bisphenols in these products pose to children? It is true that the amount of bisphenol contained in each of the products tested was relatively low. However According to the EU Food Safety Authority EFSA, low exposure to BPA continues to pose a health risk in all age groups.

Actually, In April 2023, EFSA concluded that the safe exposure limit is 20,000 times lower than previously thought to be safe.. EFSA also estimates that the average consumer’s dietary intake of BPA is now well above the new limit, which is now much lower than before. And this is done without taking into account other sources of BPA exposure, such as consumer products or combined exposure to BPA and other bisphenols.

” Common presence of bisphenols in children’s products and canned foods It’s alarming to prove it,” says Müller.

“To protect the health of children and their parents, We must stop the widespread use of not only BPA but also other bisphenols.. Doing so in children’s toys and products, and urgently phasing out these harmful chemicals from all products commonly used by consumers, such as food packaging and textiles, is a priority.”

The good news is that Germany has already proposed an EU-wide restriction on BPA and four other bisphenols. “This is an important step. But it is not enough to protect children’s health either, as ECHA (European Agency for Chemicals and Mixtures) has recommended the EU to restrict 25 additional bisphenols, which we also found in our test, including for example BPBs and PCBs”.

According to experts, the current regulation is not enough. “We urgently need stronger legislative measures to protect children and their parents from exposure to bisphenol. In this way, I hope that one day soon I will be able to attend a scientific conference where bisphenols are no longer detected in children.”

They want them banned from Spain

As a result of this investigation, the Spanish organization Toxin-free home, which is fighting to ban these and other chemicals, Requested the Department of Consumer Affairs to encourage analysis of a range of children’s products To find out the extent of possible exposure of Hispanic children to problematic bisphenols, “substances that can alter the hormonal balance of humans and largely the child population”.

According to Carlos de Prada, director of Hogar sin tóxicos, “Unfortunately, we learn about this not from the authorities, but from the publications of non-governmental organizations.Who needs to monitor, control and report such health risks, with or without regulated substances? Exposure to these substances can cause effects at very low concentrations. The situation of children who are more susceptible to the effects of hormonal pollutants because they are in their full development stage”.

A few official checks

The same entity reproaches existing official controls are “few and largely inadequate, Because they generally adhere to a limited number of products and only a few specific toxic substances are sought, when a very high percentage of substances are known, basically some legal prohibition or restriction regulations are enacted while others are not. What the scientific community defines as dangerous and to which the population is exposed on a daily basis is still not properly regulated”.

As Carlos de Prada emphasizes, “There are an infinite number of toxic substances that are unregulated and pose a real risk to the population. Even if a toxic substance is not on the regulated and/or prohibited list, it is equally toxic and does the same harm to health. As a result, one should not wait for it to be banned. The Precautionary Principle should be applied taking as reference the degree of available scientific knowledge about the risks of such substances”.

The European Society of Endocrinology has repeatedly condemned a range of chemicals to which the population is exposed on a daily basis, and “contributes significantly to the diseases and disabilities that people may face in their lifetime”This organization, which consists of 45 scientific societies from different European countries, including the Spanish SEEN, asked the authorities to take measures to reduce people’s exposure to these harmful chemicals. about the shortcomings of the procedures in which they are evaluated and authorized.

Daily and accidental exposure

An example of what has been discussed is certainly bisphenols. Because of its proven risks, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) More than 30 bisphenols may need to be restricted, and he warns that the list may actually be much longer. as more data become available on the toxicity of each. “However, this may take a long time to happen in effective regulation,” warns Hogar sin Tóxicos.

Carlos de Prada confirms this, Meanwhile, millions of people will continue to be exposed to these substances every day and unintentionally for years to come.including the most sensitive to health effects, such as children and pregnant women.

“Even bisphenol A, the best known and most studied of these chemical pollutants, and currently officially considered ‘extremely worrying’, is not yet properly regulated.and it took decades before some specific uses of this substance were legally restricted. Besides BPA, there are dozens of other bisphenols that have yet to be regulated, which can have similar harmful effects,” he explains.

Hogar sin toxins also denounces the fact that, as science narrows the siege of bisphenol A, the industry is replacing it with other bisphenols that can cause similar toxic effects, without doing the necessary work to ensure its safety first.

Reference work: https://www.beuc.eu/blog/hormone-disrupting-chemicals-found-in-60-of-121-childrens-products/

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To contact From the environment department: crisisclimatica@prensaiberica.es