HealthyStuff.org, a website promoting research from Ecology Center, which released a study revealing that 71 percent of university-themed products sold at top retailers contained at least one toxic chemical, such as arsenic, bromine, cadmium, chlorine, lead and mercury, wrapped up its March Badness tournament to determine the most toxic college product. It unveiled the winner last week.
Even though the University of Connecticut and University of Kentucky faced off in the NCAA finals last week, each school had a product in the March Badness Shameful Sixteen. University of Kentucky toddler shoes from Target were found to be high in lead and chlorine with low levels of arsenic and bromine while the UConn can cooler from a local bookstore that was made in Mexico tested positive for PVC with high levels of chlorine, especially in the imprint. While the can cooler tested negative for phthalates, it also contained a medium level of tin as well as low levels of lead, arsenic and bromine. However, both were eliminated by more hazardous products in the Shameful Sixteen.
The worst of the worst also included an Oklahoma University beaded necklace from Walmart, a University of Arizona canvas chair from Home Depot and a Duke University tumbler from Walmart, but the final two came down to a matchup between two lunch bags—University of Florida and University of North Carolina—that were purchased from Walmart. After 2,000 voters filled out their brackets, the Florida Gators bag, which was manufactured in China, received the “Most Toxic Product” award with test results indicating high levels of lead and chlorine, as well as medium levels of cadmium.
“In college towns across America, March Madness brings with it a tremendous amount of excitement,” said Rebecca Meuninck, environmental health campaign director for the Ecology Center and HealthyStuff.org. “Many of the universities represented in our study pride themselves on their efforts to green their campuses, but there’s a disconnect when university-themed products contain harmful chemicals linked to diseases like certain cancers, thyroid disruption, infertility and learning disabilities.”
Researchers at the Ecology Center, a Michigan-based nonprofit, tested 65 university-themed products from 19 universities for substances linked to health-related problems and diseases, like asthma, birth defects, reproductive problems and cancer. Some items surpassed Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) limits in lead or phthalates. These products that ranged from key chains to sports jerseys were purchased at major retailers, including Target, Walgreens and Walmart. The study was posted on HealthyStuff.org, which collaborates with state-level organizations working on chemicals policy reform.
In summary, 16 of the 18 products tested from phthalates contained phthalate plasticizers, a CPSC-banned substance in children’s products. While 71 percent of the 65 products contained at least one concerning chemical, 38 percent contained two or more of those chemicals.
A University of Michigan Jersey from Target contained more than 5,027 ppm of bromine—the highest found in the study—and 131 ppm of lead in the ink print. A University of Michigan seat cushion contained high levels of lead and cadmium while one of its keychains contained 125 ppm of arsenic and another contained 1,230 ppm of mercury.
Twenty of the products tested received a rating of low concern, including a Duke University mesh baby bib and a Michigan State University Hooded Rain Poncho.
“Showing your team colors during March Madness shouldn’t be bad for your health, yet researchers have found that dangerous chemicals like arsenic, lead, phthalates and toxic flame retardants are common in the products they tested,” said Mike Schade, Mind the Store campaign director for Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families. “Consumers don’t want to worry that a NCAA-themed product could carry toxic chemicals into their home. They’re counting on major retailers to leverage their position in the market to encourage the sale of safe products.”
For more information, visit www.healthystuff.org.
Edited: The story was updated to correct the teams that participated in the NCAA finals last week.
