Lead poisoning shows no obvious symptoms but with prolonged exposure of lead it can affect a child's brain, nervous system, heart, and red blood cells. In some extreme cases lead poisoning can cause seizures, comas and death. Children between the ages of 1-6 are at risk of being diagnosed with lead poisoning because they spend majority of their time on the floor putting their hands, toys and other objects in their mouths. Since lead poisoning shows no outer symptoms the only way to find out the amount of lead in your child's system is to go to a doctor and get a blood test especially if your child has the habit of chewing their toys.
The United States banned the use of lead in children's products, house paint, children's toys and household dishes in 1978. However the importation from other countries that still use lead paint and plastics for various products still exists. In recent years the United States has limited the concentration of lead in children's toys, furniture and other products to .009% (90 parts per million) in lead paint and any other similar surface coating. The only exception is bicycles which are required to have no more than 300ppm of total lead content. Other items such as jewelry, key chains and charms may also contain lead. Swallowing any of these items can also lead to acute lead poisoning or death.
There are in-home lead tests available that can help parents test their children's toys. It's not entirely reliable since it can only detect high amounts of lead on the surface but cannot detect lows amount of lead below the surface.
The U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) has released Trouble in Toyland, the complete list of 2013 toys deemed dangerous for small children. Click the link below to view the news report and list of toys deemed dangerous:
Dolphin Blue sells toys that are produced without lead paint as they are made without any external coating. They are also made in the USA!
Just click on the link below to go directly to our toy page:
http://www.dolphinblue.com/made-in-the-usa-green-toys-eco-friendly-children-toys.html
If your child's toy has been recalled remove the item from the child immediately.