These days, parents are bombarded with information on potential hazards to their families. But, how do you judge when it is a real risk?
The recently published book, “Slow Death by Rubber Duck”, attempts to make some interesting claims about the affects of certain chemicals in our everyday life; however, it would be more convincing if they had any facts to support their accusations. The authors perform several homemade experiments by exposing themselves to environmental chemicals in an effort to prove certain everyday products can be hazardous. The problem is that this does nothing to prove anything substantial. Although these so called “facts” may seem frightening, the book is nothing more than fiction, and lacks rigorous scientific evidence. Quite the contrary, many of the chemicals they “test” have been around for decades and have received extensive research and government agency approval.
For example, this book generalizes all phthalates as being dangerous; when in reality, DINP, one of the most commonly used phthalate in consumer products, has been deemed safe by multiple government agencies like the Consumer Project Safety Commission (CPSC) and the National Toxicology Program. According to CPSC estimates, a child would have to eat more than 3,400 rubber ducks contained with DINP to exceed the save exposure limit[i].
There are many more serious risks facing our families than exposure to plastics. For instance, each year, hundreds of children have been injured or killed from vehicle accidents. The organization KidsAndCars stated that there were 246 fatalities in 2009; unfortunately from children being left unattended or just hanging around motor vehicles. Car safety should be considered a top priority, given all the dangers that come along with automobiles. Something such as DINP, which has no evidence of human harm, should not even compare to the real risks children face daily. Parents need be able to distinguish fact from fiction and know where to get accurate information on children’s safety issues.
The Child Safety Task Force has compiled a list, based on data the Center for Disease Control and the CPSC, for what should be considered the top ten real risks to kids. These include:
Parents should be aware of all the dangers in the list above and take the necessary precautions, rather than worry over products that have been well studied and approved for use. Scaremongering books likes this one divert time, attention, and resources away from the real risks kids face.
[i] This number was derived using mouthing and exposure estimates from the CPSC and Chronic Hazard Advisory Panel (CHAP), in 2001.
