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Lead Found in Some Christmas Lights

From Ronni Berke and Greg Hunter,

CNN

Posted: 2007-12-11 07:19:25

(Dec. 10) -- For many families, having the children help decorate the Christmas tree is a treasured tradition, starting with the strands of lights. But a CNN analysis of four common brands of Christmas lights shows levels of lead experts say are high enough to be dangerous to children.

Ali Al-Saadi,AFP / Getty Images

Four Christmas light brands -- Wal-Mart, GE, Sylvania and Philips -- were were found to have enough surface lead to pose a danger to children. "You don't realize there's lead in it, you eat a cookie, you eat something without washing your hands, that exposure builds up in your body over time," a doctor said.

Manufacturers do not hide the fact that lead is part of the PVC insulation that insulates Christmas light wiring. Lead is used legally to stabilize polyvinyl chloride so it does not crack or crumble with age. The lead also acts as a fire retardant.

But the levels of surface lead surprised Dr. Leo Trasande, a specialist in children's environmental health at New York's Mount Sinai School of Medicine.

"There is no level at which lead exposure is safe," Dr. Trasande said. "Even at one microgram/deciliter -- the lowest level in a person's blood stream that we can detect -- that level has been associated with cognitive impairment in children."

CNN's "American Morning" purchased samples of four common brands of Christmas lights and asked an independent New Jersey-based testing organization, Quantex Laboratories, to check for surface lead. Quantex analyzed three strings of lights from each brand.

The lab followed the Consumer Product Safety Commission's standard wipe test for lead in polyvinyl chloride products, including mini blinds and toys, to see how much lead in the cords' PVC coating would come off on someone's hands.

"You don't realize there's lead in it, you eat a cookie, you eat something without washing your hands, that exposure builds up in your body over time," said Dr. James Menoutis, who runs the lab at Quantex.

In the four brands of lights tested, Quantex found surface lead levels far exceeding the CPSC's recommended children's limit of 15 micrograms.

Wal-Mart brand lights had the highest levels of surface lead, with levels ranging from 86.6 to 132.7 micrograms. GE lights showed surface lead levels from 68 to 109.1 micrograms. Sylvania had surface lead levels from 59 to 70.3 micrograms. Levels of surface lead in the lights made by Philips ranged from a low of 3.2 -- well under the 15 microgram limit -- to 107.2 in another sample.

Tips for Using Lights Safely
· Don't let children touch Christmas lights.
· Adults should wear gloves when handling lights.
· Wash hands after use.

Source: CNN

For Trasande, the high levels of surface lead in the lights are a real concern.

"I wouldn't needlessly expose [children] to a lead-based hazard that could have significant lifelong consequences for that child's cognitive capacity or their attention or other health problems," Trasande said. He recommended leaving lights off trees entirely.

In written statements, the four companies whose lights were tested all expressed concern about safety.

"The special coating around electrical wires on the light sets is necessary to pass the stringent UL safety and quality regulations," Wal-Mart wrote. "We are in full compliance with UL regulations which set the standards for electrical coatings."

Sylvania said its lights are "tested rigorously for safety and have been used safely by millions of Americans for many years."

"Holiday lights are electrical appliances. We encourage consumers to exercise common sense by keeping holiday lights and other electrical products away from the hands and mouths of children," the company wrote.

Don't Miss In Depth: Toy Recall "We can make a fairly obvious common sense observation: Lights are not toys, should not be handled by children, and are not subject to the same standards for lead," wrote GE. "The CPSC guidelines you refer to are for products that would regularly be handled by children."

Philips pointed out that while the CPSC swipe test "is not a mandated measurement for our industry (it is a test to be applied to children's items and not electrical products), Philips takes matters concerning lead content very seriously. As such, the company and the industry are currently working on technologies to reduce the amount of lead in these products."

The Consumer Product Safety Commission insists Christmas lights do not pose an elevated danger of lead exposure to children. A spokeswoman vigorously criticized the CNN tests, saying that using the CPSC's methods for testing lead on blinds and toys "is like comparing apples to oranges and is rotten to the core."

But in a prior interview, not a response to CNN's tests, the Consumer Product Safety Commission advised children should still keep away from lights because they are electrical products, not toys.

"There are plenty of other things kids can do to help decorate the tree," said Julie Vallese, the CPSC spokesperson. "Lights are something that should be the responsibility of the parent."

Underwriters Laboratories, which inspects tree lights for electrical and fire hazards, said there are substitutes for lead in the insulation, such as calcium and zinc, but those options would be more expensive to manufacture.

So what's the best way to minimize lead exposure from Christmas lights? Experts say only adults should handle the lights. Wear gloves. The lights should be hung out of children's reach. And follow the instructions on the box: "Wash hands after use."

2007-12-10 09:16:16

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57 comments

singingspur 05:58:35 AM Dec 30 2008

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I find it unbelievable that they claim the lead is a fire preventative. I had a single strand of Walmart Christmas lights on my banister and just days after Christmas the power source end caught on fire. Luckily we were able to limit the damage to the light strand and the outlet. I returned the set to Walmart yesterday and they just looked at me like I had intentionally set it on fire. After explaining to them numerous times that it was the ONLY set plugged into that outlet and I was mainly concerned for others who might not be so lucky to put out the fire fast enough, did they offer to refund my $2.50. I wasn't even really caring about the money but since they treated me like an idiot I took it anyway. LOL. Word of caution.... It is NOT the LEAD in Walmart's Christmas lights that will kill you but instead it's the FIRE it causes (despite the LEAD that was intended to PREVENT a FIRE).

Cheever1 01:05:39 PM Dec 12 2007

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I do think lead is a real issue. However, instead of not putting lights on your tree, try making children wash their hands before eating and teach them not to touch the tree after it is put together... it drives me nuts when someone says...when I was a kid blah blah blah... well now we know better, do not let your children make toys out of lead ... seriuosly use your brain...

Pluto46jn 09:56:21 AM Dec 12 2007

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As a kid I had a lead melting pot, ladle, and numerous metal molds for making lead soldiers and toys. I still have them. (They made toys to last back then.) My son and grandson have used them to make toy soldiers and have painted them and played with them. . Besides the lead toys, we also make our own bullets and do reloading for rifles, pistols and muzzleloaders I graduated college with a 4 point GPA. My son graduated with honors and my grandson is seventeen and has a 3.85 GPA. If this is the result of leads effect on cognitive ability, pour me some more lead. When I read that I needed to wear gloves to put up our Christmas lights I was ROTFLMAO.

MyWRXtacy02 12:44:51 AM Dec 12 2007

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LEAD ROCKS.......My Chrismas lights!!!

Shewolvesarefun 12:24:15 AM Dec 12 2007

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In my family it always was the adults who strung the lights onto the tree, it's plain common sense.

PandoraMayfair17 11:54:49 PM Dec 11 2007

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And imagine when all these millions of baby diapers finally decompose what will happen!! LOL!! I swear quite a few of both my kids diapers were toxic when I threw them away (at least that is what my husband claimed)!!! LOL!!! How about nobody EAT the holiday lights or your artifical tree and I think we might all make it through :) HAPPY CHRISTMAS!!!

My3sons1245 10:52:28 PM Dec 11 2007

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No Lord don't blame Mr Gore that complete IDIOT didn't do anything in office. Him and his cohort Clinton did nothing but cut our military down to nothing so now we have to use the reservist and talk about bringing back the draft. Yeah lets don't blame those Idiots for anything.

JMJMosley 08:17:23 PM Dec 11 2007

Report This! Don't blame Al gore. He isn't the one sending all of the manufacturing jobs to China.
What are the Chinese going to do if we stop buying their products , Attack us? they don't seem to think it's their fault and they sure don't give a damn.

Shockly Smiles 10:17:51 PM Dec 11 2007

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Careful.... If you don't agree with AOLs people or listen to any kind of music they don't like. Then they'll say your on drugs. That's just so for the greater good of them. Sieg Hiel old school haters sieg hiel spudboy!

Mya70pny 10:13:06 PM Dec 11 2007

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LEAD IS one of the chemicals in our city drinking water... ive been wondering though what i dont understand..why are children so suseptible to the lead and adults arent? or are we? you never hear anything about adults having problem with getting lead in their systems.. you say that children do it because they stick their hands in their mouth all the time what about adults that bite their fingernails etc after touching a product with lead dust on it?
oh and to get off the point for a minute i am SO SICK OF HEARING about this gives you cancer and that gives you cancer if you eat it.. our bodies need the proteins in meat , you need to eat it in moderation.. fish poisons us. we get ecoli. we get cancer from bbq.. so what the friggin hell are we supposed to eat??? dirt? oh wait isnt that where the ecoli comes from? at least i wont die hungry!!!

Ktxfsimp 09:39:35 PM Dec 11 2007

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I'm so glad to see that I'm not the only non-alarmist around. Not that I'll be sprinkling lead chips on my sundae or dusting it on like talc, but I don't think we need to be as crazy as we are about the issue. The only thing that I can see as real justification for it is that when these items get thrown away, the lead may leech into the ground and yadda yadda, end up in drinking water, etc. Which isn't a big deal I imagine until there's tons of it, which there probably already is. Yippee! Along w\ the thousand-year-old plastics, newspapers, etc., that'll be lingering for ages waiting to either be excavated by whomever for whatever reason.

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57 comments