-
May 20, 2008 5:00 pm US/Mountain
-
Digg |
Facebook |
E-mail
|
Print
Parents Meet In Wash Park To Discuss Toxic Toys
DENVER (CBS4) ―
Parents concerned about toxic toys took their message to Washington Park Tuesday. They're concerned some toys contain dangerous chemicals that have been linked to birth defects and various cancers.
Children were told to throw away their rubber duckies because their parents worried the chemical used to make the toys soft is toxic when children put them in their mouth.
"They are incredibly prevalent in children's toys like rubber duckies; the teething rings that I used on all four of my little kids," health care advocate Robyn O'Brien said.
The softening synthetic chemical known as phthalates mimics estrogen. It has been linked to birth defects and various forms of cancer.
"We're getting the ball rolling, getting people educated; moms, parents, kids about the fact that we can actually do something about this," mother Nancy Wilhelm said.
California and Washington have already passed legislation to ban the use of phthalates in toys and 10 others are now debating it.
The parents support a bill now before Congress to restrict the use of phthalates in children's toys and childcare products.
"We shouldn't have to worry that we're exposing our kids to a dose of toxic chemicals when we hand them their favorite rubber ducky," Wilhelm said.
"This legislation is not anti-business," another advocate at the event said. "We have plenty of uses, as we all know, for petroleum-based products. We just don't need this product."
The Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said the health effects of phthalates on humans are uncertain and that more research is needed. But the parents are convinced the danger is undeniable and they say the industry is starting to acknowledge it.
"Fortunately, a lot of these American corporations are voluntarily removing this chemical from their products," O'Brien said.
Phthalates is currently banned or restricted in the European Union and more than a dozen other countries around the world.
(© MMVIII CBS Television Stations, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)