Canada Proposes Ban of Phthalates in Children’s Products; U.S. Ban Already in Effect

Canadian health officials are considering a ban on the use of chemicals called phthalates in soft vinyl toys, dolls, bibs, and other children’s products because kids who put the items in their mouths may suffer from developmental delays and other health problems.

The United States’ ban on the use of the chemicals in such products went into effect earlier this year. The restriction followed years of intense legal wrangling and a last-ditch effort by toy makers to use a loop hole in the legislation to allow toys made before the ban went into effect to stay on store shelves. In the end, courts ruled that all toys, even those already in stores, must comply with the ban.

President George W. Bush signed the measure into law in August 2008 and set it to take effect in February 2009.

Phthalates are used in many consumer products to make vinyl plastic softer and more flexible. However, exposure to the chemicals has been linked by some to liver and kidney failure in young children who frequently put the products in their mouths for long periods of time.

Many bath toys and those plastic covers that fit over a bathtub spout to prevent bonks on the head during baths commonly contain phthalates.

Plastics Industry Disagrees

The American Chemistry Council, a plastic industry advocacy group, said phthalates do not seep out of plastic products or build up in the body to become harmful. To the contrary, the council says research indicates that the chemicals are quickly broken down naturally by the body within minutes.

“There is no scientific basis to believe that Health Canada’s decision to restrict certain phthalates in children’s products will improve public health or meet the stated objective of protecting the health and safety of Canadian children,” it said.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said studies find that average phthalates exposure levels are safely below limits set to protect the public.

Canadian Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq said her country’s move to ban phthalates is “part of our overall efforts to ensure that families have confidence in the quality and safety of what they buy.”

BPA is Different, Officials Say

Because they are not known to accumulate in the body, phthalates differ greatly from another controversial plastic chemical, called bisphenol-A (BPA). An increasing international movement is calling for a ban on the use of BPA from infant bottles, sippy cups, and other children’s products. BPA is added to many clear, hard plastics to make them more shatterproof.

There is growing opposition and considerable scientific evidence to show that BPA can build up in the body and result in severe developmental problems in children and other complications.

The FDA, which has said that BPA is safe when used at currently approved levels, recently announced it was reconsidering that position after hearing from critics who said the FDA had used flawed research to back BPA.

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