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An environmental watchdog has offered tips to parents shopping for raincoats for their children after finding cadmium, a toxic chemical, in some samples bought from stores in Metro Manila.
As part of its ongoing campaign to promote children’s health and safety, the EcoWaste Coalition recently investigated common school materials, particularly plastic raincoats for kids.
It said it bought raincoats costing P39 to P250 each from retail stores in Caloocan, Las Piñas and Pasay cities. Armed with an X-ray fluorescence (XRF) device, it then screened the items for cadmium, which found that four of 12 raincoats tested positive for the chemical at levels exceeding European Union safety standards. The EU limit for cadmium in plastics is 100 parts per million (ppm).
READ: Ecowaste Coalition finds high level of toxic chemical in some pet toys
“A light blue raincoat with a Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse design was found to contain 691 ppm of cadmium, while three pink raincoats with Peppa, Princess and Princess Mica designs had 371 ppm, 317 ppm, and 220 ppm, respectively,” the group said. The remaining eight raincoats showed no detectable levels of cadmium.
According to the World Health Organization, cadmium “exerts toxic effects on the kidneys, the skeletal system, and the respiratory system and is classified as a human carcinogen.”
EcoWaste noted that “none of the 12 analyzed plastic raincoats provided complete product labeling information.” To ensure their children’s safety, parents were advised to “pick non-PVC plastic raincoats, avoid products marked ‘plastic #3,’ ‘PVC’ or ‘vinyl’ and those with a strong chemical smell.”
The group also urged the government to come up with health-protective regulations to prevent and reduce children’s exposure to hazardous chemicals in common household and school products.