Lead Paint Recalls - Are you worried?

CantWait wrote: Just wondering if you're worried about the recalls. Are you throwing all the toys away? Are you consiously not buying products made from China. Are you not worried, or are you just unsure what to think.

I'm in the not sure what to think category. It angers me that so many toys are being deemed unsafe to play with, but at the same time this has been going on for years.

PrairieMom replied: I voted unsure because I am worried about it, but I'm not totally freaking out. I am just having an awareness about the toys that we have and are going to be very careful about the toys that we are going to buy. I have thrown out a bunch of Bens stuff.

My2Beauties replied: I put unsure, because Hanna honestly does not stick her toys in her mouth, she has far surpassed this stage, I checked most of them, none of them are chipping or paint scratched off, I don't think she has any in the recalls, but then again I'm not completely sure because so many have been recalled. I just think that it's not that serious of a problem unless your kid is constantly buting on the toy or sucking on their hands after playing with their toys. Now when Aubrey gets a little older, I'll be worried, she already puts everything in her mouth, I know they go through that stage for quite some time, so I'll have to be really careful what I get her. I'm not worried about Hanna doing this though.

moped replied: I voted no because i am not worried nor have I thrown anything out but Jack hasn't owned any of the recalled items as of yet either.

gr33n3y3z replied: I put no bc I'm not worried about my kids bc they are way much older
But I'am for other children

A&A'smommy replied: I am but I'm not so I voted unsure... I haven't really thrown anything out or even gone through them BUT again I know what we have and we didn't have any of the toys recalled

Anthony275 replied: i think you should just be careful when kids are playing with the toys, to make sure they dont have paint chipping off or anything. but its not a concern unless a very young child is putting the toys in their mouth, etc

luvbug00 replied: Mya hasn't had most of the toys so it hasn't been much of a concern but it is for any future babies that come into the house.

holley79 replied: I guess I"m bad because I don't give it much thought.

Hillbilly Housewife replied: I get mostly canadian made stuff anyways.

I'm more worried about things like pesticides and hormones in our fruits\veggies\meat than the lead in the toys. Lead has been around for years and years...and sure it has bad effects on us...but they are known. However ppl are f'ing around with our food supply and that just ticks me off, because now we're all going to be mutants in like 30 years.

my2monkeyboys replied: I agree. The food concerns me more than the paint. We all grew up with lead in the paints around us and we've turned out fine.... well, most of us have!
But as long as we try to be mindful of it and watch what our kids are doing (which we should be doing anyway) I don't see a big reason to freak out.

mysweetpeasWil&Wes replied: I voted yes. And I have thrown out some of the boys toys. I am careful what I buy. IMO, the lead may not be showing any symptoms on our kids now, but who knows what may happen when our kids are older. I know just about everything has a cancer scare on it these days, but I have a hard time just sitting back and ignoring any hazardous possibilities.

luvmykids replied: I voted unsure, I agree with what everyone has said...we had a few recalled toys that I got rid of but I'm also not too concerned; I'd guess that even with the lead paint they're probably safer than the toys I played with. I don't blow it off, I'm just not being vigilant about it.

boyohboyohboy replied:
ditto...
i am much more careful what i buy now, and have thrown out toys

MommyToAshley replied:
I agree... If it is a known hazard, then why not take it seriously? It was not too long ago that people didn't take smoking seriously... just because you have smoked or know someone who has smoked for years and doesn't have cancer doesn't mean that it isn't a risk. I think the same thing is true with lead... just because we grew up in houses with lead paint and toys with lead paint doesn't mean it is safe. The medical profession now knows that too much lead in the system can cause a whole series of health problems, including brain damage. So, I see nothing wrong with a little precaution. There's so many things we have no control over, and accidents will happen, and there are probably harmful things going on that we don't even know about... so why not protect our kids from the hazzards we do know about and can do something about.

I try not to blow it out of proportion, and lead in toys is not on my mind every minute of the day, but I am more thoughtful about what toys I buy and I think something needs to be done to test toys BEFORE they go on the market.

Ashley was never one to stick stuff in her mouth, but I threw away the toys on the recall list and any cheap dollar store toys. I took away the toys made in china that go in the mouth, such as musical instruments. I also had Ashley's lead level checked at her 5 year appointment (It was a simple finger prick) just as a precaution because we had several toys on the recall list.

kimberley replied:
ditto. we don't have any of the recall toys nor is anything chipping. the kids don't put stuff in their mouth anymore. though i am cautious, there are bigger concerns to me.

it's a wonder any of us 30 and older possibly survived childhood with our lead painted cribs with the bars too wide, no car seats but dad's arm slamming across you when he stopped fast, pointy toys and whatever else.

coasterqueen replied:
Ditto.

I agree we should be cautious and get rid of any recalled items because we don't know what the future holds for our little ones because they were exposed to them. Is it my biggest concern? No. What is? What is put in our foods and water.

Let me ask this to those who do think it's a huge concern and are taking serious precautions -- are you doing the same when it comes to your food? Because I can guaranty that what you put in your mouth daily is far more dangerous than playing with toys that have lead paint on them.

MommyToAshley replied:
Yup. Had the poll asked if I was concerned about chemicals and hormones in food, then the answer to that poll would have been yes as well. We buy hormones free milk and meat, and I am going to be growing our own garden next year.

If the poll had asked if I was concerned about MRSA, then the answer would also have been yes. I carry my hand sanitizer around and make sure Ashley washes her hands often.

Again, I don't go overboard obsessing about any of these things 24 hours a day, but I think it is our obligation to take precautions and protect our children against known dangers. I don't think we need to pick and choose which danger we try to protect our children from. There are lots of things we can't control, but it's important to take precautions against the things we do know that cause harm. That's one thing I love about this board, I am more aware and educated than I would have been without it.

coasterqueen replied:
I completely agree with you, Dee Dee.

My2Beauties replied:
Yes thank to all of you guys and some of the posts on this board I have been MUCH more aware of the foods I buy and what I eat. I've been steering clear of fast food (especially burgers and fry type foods at fast food restaurants) for a while now, dont' get me wrong we have stopped off at Taco Bell once or twice and maybe McD's once but nowhere near like we used to. I have been cooking almost every SINGLE night and when I went to the grocery last week I was very mindful of what I bought, tried to buy mostly organic stuff and I've been trying to incorporate more veggies and stuff in my meals. As far as pesticides and hormones in my foods, this definitely does bother me a lot. I've noticed how much more developed Desiree is at 12 then I ever thought about being, heck even now and I know it has something to do with the hormones and what not they put in the meats, dairy products. I don't know where to go in my area to shop for the non-hormone induced foods but I try to buy lean meat and stuff like that now.

mysweetpeasWil&Wes replied: I completely agree with you too Dee Dee. The poll didn't ask about other concerns. But since it was asked, yes, I buy organic when I can. I have two mitigation systems in my home because Colorado ranks the highest for radon in the nation (second leading cause of lung cancer). I am cautious about vaccinating my kids. I returned all the lead crystal that I received for my wedding. Lead isn't ranked as my highest concern, but it's up there. I'm by no means perfect, but it's just what I do, it's how I sleep better at night, I certainly don't obsess about it. And I don't judge others who don't. On one hand, life is too short to worry all the time, but on the other, if worrying means my kids have less lead in their systems, then I'm going to choose to worry.

Dee Dee, do you mind me asking what were Ashley's results from the lead test? What did the doc say? When I was PG with Wil, we lived in a house built in 1912. We did one of those kits on our house and I don't remember what it scored exactly, but it was on the mid to high levels. Luckily we moved out of there when he was 3 months old, but it makes me want to test Wil. I'm interested to test DH and I too. Do I just call my GP to do it?

MommyToAshley replied:
Her level was 2. The doc said this was perfectly normal as everyone has a little bit of lead in their system. Anything over 5 would require a restest every month and anything over 10 would require medical intervention to bring the level down. The test was really simple... a little finger prick.

Cece00 replied: Nope, I am not worried. I just cant freak out over every little thing in life, and honestly, the only thing we've had that has been recalled through all of this was a couple of trains & I threw them out.

My kids have never had elevated lead lvls, gotten sick, nothing...

As new recalls come out, I'll check for toys & take away anything unsafe, but otherwise...nope, not worried or freaking out.

Cece00 replied:
As far as the food thing goes...the only thing I can think about that is...imagine how unsafe food probably was before the FDA regulations...and people managed to survive back then, too...sort of like with lead...it was around long ago, people are still alive.


>>The FDA was founded 98 years ago following the revelation of grossly unhygienic conditions in the Chicago stockyards. The exposé in Upton Sinclair's book, "The Jungle," made the American public so deeply concerned about the quality of food on the market that Congress felt the need to respond. It passed the Food and Drugs Act, which made the federal government responsible for ensuring the high quality of food and other essential products.