Phthalates are used in a large variety of applications, from enteric coatings of pharmaceutical pills to emulsifying and suspending agents. The continued presence of these hazards in toys highlights the need for constant vigilance on the part of govern ment agencies and the public to ensure that children do not end up playing with unsafe toys. Phthalates and childrens products national center for. They are ubiquitous in the environment and low levels of phthalates in food is not unexpected.
On october 27, 2017, the commission published the final phthalates rule in the federal register. They are colorless, odorless, oily liquids that do not evaporate easily and do not. Toys with phthalates included dolls, squeeze toys, animal figurines, a tinkertoys component, and a ball. These versatile organic compounds are used in a broad range of industries and products, including food and beverage containers, childrens toys, childcare items, medical devices, personal care items, and household items. School lunchboxes, binders, backpacks, modeling clay, and some soft plastic and inflatable toys. Annex xvii is the list of substance restrictions and entry 51 has restricted three phthalates in toys and childrens products for many years. The content of phthalates in toys and other children articles for children in the age group 03 years is regulated by the statutory order of danish ministry of environment and energy no. Sample preparation, extraction and analysis of imported. Survey and health assessment of phthalates in toys and other. Survey and health assessment of phthalates in toys and other products for children 5 foreword this project on phthalates in toys, childcare articles and other products for children is carried during the period march to december 2014. Determination of the composition and quantity of phthalate ester.
Phthalates testing and analysis in plastics and polymers, including a wide range of products such as cosmetics, toys and food contact materials phthalates is a softening and flexibilityinducing group of chemical esters in products, and their levels are of ongoing concern, due to their wide usage in our everyday products. This project on phthalates in toys, childcare articles and other products for children. Standards for toy safety are enforced by the consumer product safety commission cpsc. In the consumer product safety improvement act of 2008 cpsia, congress permanently prohibited childrens toys or child care articles containing concentrations of more than 0. American manufacturers produce and use millions of pounds of bisphenol a bpa and phthalates annually. Phthalates are not chemically bonded to pvc, so the phthalates readily migrate out of the pvc e. In 2006, the european union banned the use of 6 phthalates in toys that may be placed in the mouth by children younger than 3 years old. Phthalates are also found in modern electronics and medical applications such as catheters and blood transfusion devices.
The content of phthalates in toys and other articles for children up to 3 years of age. Pdf phthalate in childrens toys and childcare articles in croatia. Phthalates and phthalate substitutes in childrens toys cpsc. Health and environmental concerns january 2011 t e c h n i c a l b r i e f i n g the lowell center for sustainable production at the university of massachusetts lowell helps to build healthy work environments, thriving communities, and viable businesses that support a more sustainable world. Phthalates are used widely in polyvinyl chloride plastics, which are used to make products such as plastic packaging film and sheets, garden hoses, inflatable toys, bloodstorage containers, medical tubing, and some childrens toys. Federal register prohibition of childrens toys and. The decision to restrict the use of phthalates in childrens products, however, is not based on science. This health concern has resulted in the regulation of the type and level of phthalates allowable in toys and other childrens products.
Phthalates are synthesized as an ester of benzenedicarboxylic acid also known as phthalic acid and are valued for their ability to promote both flexibility and stability in plastics. The european union eu 1 and the us consumer product safety improvement act cpsia introduced regulations for children toys and childcare products 2. Phthalates basically included in the banned for toys category are dehp, dbp, bbp, dnop, didp and dinp. They are also called plasticizers and can be found in many articles and consumer products. Twenty four childrens toys and child care articles available in the local market of india were analyzed for eight phthalates as children toys are plasticized with phthalates. The prohibition concerning phthalates applies to any plasticized component part of a childrens toy or child care article or any other component part of a childrens toy or child care article that is made of other materials that may contain phthalates.
How toxic sex toys illustrate a broader problem for consumer protection zach biesanz not long ago, mattel, the worlds largest toymaker, responded to pressure from consumer advocate and environmental groups, by changing the composition of its barbie toys. To limit the use of phthalates, many regions have enforced regu lation with specific guidance for phthalates application range. The eu adopted regulation 201820051 on 17th december 2018, which amend entry 51 of annex xvii of the reach regulation. Phthalates are a family of manmade chemical compounds. Survey and health assessment of phthalates in toys and. Phthalates are a group of chemical substances used to soften plastics. Microwave extraction methods were created and optimized against spex certiprep certified solid reference materials to compare levels of phthalates and bpa found in the toys. Toys sold in the indian market have been shown to contain shockingly high levels of lead and cadmium kumar and pastore, 2007 but there are no reports of phthalates in toys from india. Diisononyl phthalate dinp, diisodecyl phthalate didp, and di2ethylhexyl phthalate dehp are the most common types of compounds used within the phthalate family, with dehp representing.
These are synthetic compounds added to pvc as plasticizers. In almost all soft pvc toys analysed, phthalates comprised a sizeable proportion most frequently 1040% of the total weight of the toy. Pdf childrens toys are made of artificial material often softened by phthalates. Benzylbutylphthalate bbp is used in the manufacture of foamed. The phthalates rule, which is codified at 16 cfr part 7, makes permanent the interim statutory prohibition on diisononyl phthalate dinp and expands that restriction to prohibit all childrens toys and child care articles that contain concentrations of more than 0. Federal register childrens products, childrens toys. Expanding the number of restricted phthalates from three dehp, dbp and bbp to four dehp, dbp, bbp and dibp expanding the scope from plasticized materials in toys and childcare articles to plasticized materials in articles. The report describes the results of the project, including the survey of the market and the results of the survey.
They are colorless, odorless, oily liquids that do not evaporate easily and do not chemically bind to the material they are added to. Phthalates analysis in toys using agilent 5977e gcms. The content of phthalates in toys and other articles for children up to three years of age is regulated by the statutory order of danish ministry of environment and energy, no. Shower curtains, flooring, and coverings on wires and cables. For example, most rubber duckies are about 50% pvc, and the remaining 50% is the phthalate diisononyl phthalate dinp, which is actually a mixture of a large. The most widely used phthalates are di2ethylhexyl phthalate dehp, diisodecyl phthalate didp, and diisononyl phthalate dinp. Phthalates are a group of chemicals used in hundreds of products, such as toys, vinyl flooring and wall covering, detergents, lubricating oils, food packaging, pharmaceuticals, blood bags and. In 2008, the consumer protection safety improvement act permanently banned 3 phthalates at concentrations greater than 0. Eu expands restriction of phthalates under reach sgs. For dehp and the two other phthalates which are classified as reprotoxic, category 2 according to council directive 67548eec1 i. The world produces over 11 tons of phthalates every minute. The report is also available as a pdffile from neris homepage.
In december 1999, the european union eu implemented a restriction on six phthalate esters in toys and childcare products meant to be placed in the mouths of children under the age of three with a maximum concentration total phthalate content not exceeding 0. Phthalates are used as plastic softeners in a very wide range of products, including toys, building materials, medical devices, household appliances, and electronics. In 2014, the international organization for standardization iso published iso 81246. Phthalates are added to plastics, primarily vinyl, to make the material softer and to increase flexibility. There are phthalates in many consumer products, including. Laboratory testing detected phthalates in 9 of the 20 toys we submitted for testing. Determination of phthalate concentration in toys and. Phthalates arent always included on labels, especially with personal care products and vinyl or plastic toys. Some phthalates have shown adverse effects on reproductive system and endocrine system. Phthalates are a group of chemicals used to soften and increase the flexibility of plastic and vinyl. Phthalate in childrens toys and childcare articles. When they are identified, its usually with an acronym like dhep or dibp.
Or almost a kilo for every single person on the planet yearly. Dehp was the dominant plasticizer used globally in pvc due to its low cost. Phthalates like dehp, dinp and didp added to pvc toys to improve flexibility in soft pvc. Concerns have been raised over the potential effect of chronic phthalate exposure on human health. Fourteen other countries, including japan, argentina, and mexico, had also banned phthalates from childrens toys prior to the u. Dbp2 and bbp3 the restriction covers the placing on the market and use in any type of toys and childcare articles. All toy samples showed the presence of one or more phthalates including. So far, healthbased guidance values hbgvs and laboratory reference materials are only available for the seven phthalates studied in this piece of research work. Potential for the presence of phthalates in specified materials at concentrations above 0.
Phthalates in toys available in indian market article pdf available in bulletin of environmental contamination and toxicology 866. Pdf phthalate plasticizers and safety of toys problems and. Rapid, sensitive, and robust detection of phthalates in. In many cases, phthalates make up a large proportion of the total content of the product. Three phthalates dinp, didp and dnop were temporarily restricted in toys that can be placed in a childs mouth and child care articles and have been referred to an advisory panel for further study.
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