Last updated by charlotte.lang@essex.gov.uk on Wednesday, March 13, 2024
The cost-of-living crisis is turning consumers to cheaper products, but they come at a dangerous price.
The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) is issuing a stark warning to the public after toy testing revealed a bow-and-arrow set containing 100 times the legal limit of phthalates and a fashion doll set 300 times over the legal limit.
Phthalates are plastic-softening chemicals that are used to make plastic more durable. The use of certain phthalates is tightly restricted in toys across Europe and toy products must contain no more than 0.1%.
CTSI is deeply concerned that such large quantities of restricted phthalates are still being used in children’s toys, especially when it can cause such serious long-term consequences to a person’s health.
Restricted phthalates are carcinogenic and can cause reproductive problems as well as having long-term adverse effects on child growth and neurodevelopment.