Phthalates: What's the Story in Oregon?

I've no real idea how to say this word.  But then pronunciation isn't the issue here.  Whether I should worry that both my kids gnawed on the stuff for years is the issue.  Guided by the precautionary principle, I finally tossed the soft plastic teething toys with my 2nd child and headed for the pricey wood ones (which she completely avoided, natch).  Was it necessary for me to throw out the old ones?  Spend a ridiculous sum on the possibly safer wooden ones?  Better safe than sorry, was my take.  The threat of adverse affects on my kids' hormonal balance was a bit much for me to take.  One less thing for me to potentially screw up as their parent!  (If you're the type who needs to understand exactly what a phthalate IS, it's Wikipedia to the rescue once again.)

So what is the story with this tongue twister?  Avoid it like the plague or keep on chewin'??  I'd like to think that if it's for sale, it's safe (ha!!), but we know all too well how that goes.  Not surprisingly, California has recently banned its use in toys for kids under 3, and nine other states are fast on its heels (Texas, mamas, but not Oregon).  Not to mention the 14 nations and the E.U. which (not surprisingly) beat us to it.  The political arguments are fairly standard, with each side (industry & enviros) claiming the science supports its position. 

For some background, there's an article in the S.F. Chronicle and an editorial in the L.A. Times strongly supporting the legislation (AB 1108).  And while there are plenty of Oregonians not so keen on California these days, I'll admit to not only having lived there but being regularly grateful for the stands it takes on issues important to me.  As the LA times editorial stated, as California goes, so goes the nation.  In fact, it reported that manufacturers stated that if the CA bill passes - which it did - they would reformulate 'all the toys they sell in this country.'  Now that's power.

For an Activista who's ready to take this on here in Oregon, is something already in the works?  Is a ban in other states, including Oregon, even necessary given the CA law and its far-reaching effects on manufacturers??  Anyone???  The Oregon Environmental Council works a good bit on kids health issues, and has info on plastics & plastic toys, but nothing specific about phthalates.  There are plenty of green legislators in Salem - anyone know of those interested in the kids health angle? 

Mamas!  This is Activistas at its finest, connecting people who are ready to roll their sleeves up and dive in.  Thanks, Kathleen, for alerting us to the CA legislation and using this forum to connect with others and, ultimately, create change.  You go.

Comments

[Sara Leverette]

It is so refreshing to see this post!

As the Oregon Environmental Council's Outreach Program Director, I would like to let all the mamas out there that we are in fact working on getting phthalates (Thal-ates) out of consumer products.

Last year in partnership with Rachel's Friends we worked to pass a joint memorial from Oregon's legislature asking the federal government to set restrictions on the use of phthalates. This act was largely symbolic, but great progress was made in educating OR's legislatures on the risks these chemicals pose to our children. This hopefully sets the stage for next session. Of course the bigger feat may have been teaching folks how to pronounce the word!

Currently, we are researching options for how to approach this issue in the 2009 legislative session, with probable proposed legislation on children's consumer products. I will be sure to let you all know about what we are working on.

If you would like to get automatic updates, please sign up for OEC's action alerts by visiting http://www.oeconline.org/full_signup. Expect an action alert a month, with up to 2 during the legislative session.

For more information feel free to call us here at 503.222.1963 x105.

[Sara Leverette]

Actually, if you're looking to get involved, give us a call too!

[Sara Leverette]

On last thing... we recently developed a wallet guide on choosing safer plastics (and making green cleaning products). You can down load it at http://www.oeconline.org/kidshealth/tinyfootprints/Walletcards or email me at saral@oeconline.org and I will send you a copy. We've gone through over 2,500 copies in under a month and we are happy to send out large quantities if you would like to distribute them to others.

[olivia]

Very good info and good to know OEC is working on the issue.

As a lay mama who still can't figure out how to pronounce Phthalates, is there somewhere we can go to find out where they are found? I hit the wiki link above and saw that it could cause issues with liver, kidneys, lungs, testes and all sorts of hormonal yuckness.

But, are they found in ALL plastic toys? Are phthalates components in all plastic substances or one more than other?

Thanks anyone who can help me learn more about 'em phthalate thingamagingies.

[Lisa]

I checked OEC's guide that Sara mentions above and it notes that phthalates are found in plastics labeled with a #3, polyvinyl chloride (sounds healthy, though!). Are the baby toys labeled, though? I always thought that was just for containers??? PVC is a softener, so if you see a soft plastic toy, think phthalate.

Check out this link to e-How (http://www.ehow.com/how_8956_stay-away-phthalates.html) that includes a list of manufacturers that stopped using phthalates in 1999 (uh, when the EU banned them!).

[SuzanneLynn]

So do those rubbery bath toys that kids can squeeze and squirt out water (not to mention chew on) contain phthalates? They are soft...

[olivia]

There was a recent piece on PBS on phthalates: http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/412/index.html

"Why does the United States remain one of the few developed countries to allow children to play with toys that some scientists say may cause infertility in boys? The toys in question contain substances called phthalates (pronounced "thal-ates"). While the European Union has banned these substances in products meant for children, there is powerful resistance from the chemical and toy industries to doing the same here."

[Dr. George Bittner]

I am going to throw out another tricky phrase - ESTROGENIC ACTIVITY. Phthalates exhibit what is known as Estrogenic activity. Estrogenic Activity has been linked to causing early puberty in females, reduced sperm counts in males, altered functions of reproductive organs, obesity, altered behaviors, and increased rates of some breast, ovarian, testicular, and prostate cancers. Our children are particularly vulnerable to Estrogenic Activity (EA). In our plastics there are over a 100 chemicals that exhibit EA. Phthalates is just one of those chemicals. So buying a phthalate-free plastic toy still has other chemicals that exhibit EA.

We should be asking for plastics free of chemicals that have estrogenic activity (EA-free plastics), rather than phthalate-free plastics. Our data show that this statement applies to all types of plastics in all the recycle categories, bar none.

Various plastics manufacturers are now attempting to solve this problem by removing chemicals having EA (BPA, phthalates) one at a time. For example, the consumer can now find an abundance of BPA-free and phthalate-free products on the market. But are these products really the solution?? This is a marketing-driven solution, not a health-driven solution. The appropriate health-driven solution is to manufacture safer plastics that are EA-free. This is not a pie-in-the-sky solution, as the technology already exists to produce EA-free plastics that also have the same advantageous physical properties as the EA-releasing plastic products that are on the market today. In fact, some of these advanced-technology EA-free plastics are already in the marketplace. If consumers demanded EA-free plastics, many hundreds of different EA-free plastic products could be quickly produced that cost pennies more than existing products that release chemicals with EA.