News Coverage
I-Team Follow-Up: Lead in Children's Jewelry
Published February 3, 2005
Anchor:
Tonight, we have an important follow-up report to an ABC7 investigation we first told you about in December.
The I-Team purchased several pieces of popular children's jewelry and tested them for potentially dangerous lead content.
I-Team reporter Andrea McCarren is in the newsroom with new information.
Andrea?
McCarren on set:
Today, the government responded.
The consumer product safety commission announced a new policy to reduce the risk of health problems associated with children's jewelry.
It gives manufacturers and retailers clear guidance on what they should do to keep children safe.
Story:
When the I-Team tested 16 pieces of children's jewelry purchased in local stores, we found seven with extremely high lead levels--a potential hazard for young children.
Timothy Kropp, Environmental Working Group:
"It's going to affect your brain in its ability to develop, your ability to concentrate. Children that have a lot of lead have been shown to be more violent."
The consumer product safety commission will now look for high lead levels in children's jewelry and determine which products need to be corrected.
The staff will consider the age of the children most likely to wear the jewelry and their potential exposure to lead-filled materials.
For instance, children can even ingest lead simply by putting jewelry in their mouths.
The commission is also recommending that retailers keep the lead levels in their jewelry as low as possible and test their products on a regular basis.
McCarren on set:
Last year, the CPSC recalled more than 150 million pieces of toy jewelry sold in vending machines.