Following a surge in popularity due in part to social media, a mother in the United States speaks of finding traces of lead in dozens of Stanley glasses after conducting her own tests at home.
For years, Tamara Rubin of Portland, Oregon, a self-proclaimed “lead-safe mom” and activist, has been pressuring companies that use lead in the United States to recall thousands of their products.
She says several 40 oz. Stanley mugs and tumblers have dangerous levels of lead between the stainless steel and the outer frame of the mug, and lead can become exposed over time.
“I probably got several hundred reports of the bottom caps coming off,” Rubin told CTV News in late January. She says she receives several emails and messages daily from people who have contacted her.
She says that with increased dishwasher use and excessive moisture around the steel disc, the glue that holds the lid in place can wear away.
“This is not an intermittent problem; the bottom cap fails regularly on this product,” Rubin added.
Once the lid is removed, he says the lead is exposed in a small hole, which people, including young children, can come into contact with, Rubin worries.
“A young child who might be using it will fiddle with the bottom of a product like that while drinking, that’s human nature,” he said.
CTV News contacted Stanley for comment but did not receive a response.
However, in a statement on its website, the company confirms that lead is used in the manufacturing of its drinks.
“Our manufacturing process currently employs the use of an industry standard pad to seal the vacuum insulation at the base of our products; the sealing material includes some lead. Once sealed, this area is covered with a durable layer stainless steel, making it inaccessible to consumers.”
The company added that there is no lead on the surface of any of its products and that it meets all U.S. regulatory requirements. Stanley also highlighted any concerns related to the bottom of the cup.
“In the rare event that a product’s base cap becomes dislodged due to normal use and exposes this seal,” the company said, adding that any tumbler that has this specific issue has a lifetime warranty.
It is safe?
Kevin Wilkinson, a professor of environmental chemistry at the University of Montreal, says human exposure to lead should be avoided.
“Lead is a very toxic element, we have to be careful and take all the precautions we can,” Wilkinson said.
“If it were my cup and the lead was exposed, I wouldn’t use it. With this kind of thing, it’s safer to be safe than sorry. Lead is a very toxic metal, so you don’t want to drink anything.” odds.”
Wilkinson says companies use lead in their products because it is a cheap, easy-to-mine and accessible metal. He warns that the longer people are exposed to lead, the greater the chance it will cause life-changing problems.
“Lead is recognized as a carcinogen, many of the previous issues regarding neurodevelopmental effects, (researchers) saw that dietary lead, especially in children, led to lower IQ,” Wilkinson said .
On his website, the Canadian Pediatric Society (CPA) says exposure was most common with lead previously used in gasoline until the 1990s and in interior household paints until the 1950s. Lead exposure is not as common today because of a decrease in its use and stricter health restrictions.
“In Canada, we still have many municipalities that have too much lead in their drinking water,” says Wilkinson, adding that many municipalities are making the necessary changes to their water lines, but he says there is still a lot of work to be done. be done.
The CPA says lead exposure can cause headaches, abdominal pain, anemia, constipation, vomiting, and sometimes even death. It adds that children are more vulnerable to lead exposure due to their rapid growth and development, and can absorb 40 percent more lead than adults.
The CPA also reported that, in 2003, the World Health Organization estimated that about 3.5 percent of mild intellectual disabilities worldwide are caused by lead exposure.
What’s next for Lead-Safe Mama?
Rubin says he will continue to push to make sure Stanley and other companies stop using lead in their products.
Later this spring, he plans to file a consumer product safety commission violation report against Stanley for its 20 oz. children’s glasses which she says experience the same problem as the larger glass.
“If a company makes a product with lead, the lead is exposed and a human, especially a child, could interact with it. That is not acceptable. We need to demand that the company stop using lead or make the product in a way that lead is not exposed,” Rubin said.
Rubin has been an advocate against lead use for more than 15 years. She says her children live with several lead-related disabilities after her family was exposed during renovations to her home.
“If it were up to me, we would ban lead in all products,” Rubin said.