Nov

19

PVC Free Stroller Rain Covers

Filed Under PVC Free, Product Safety | Comments Off

A while ago our friend Kirstin of Trying to be Greener went on a manhunt to find a PVC Free Rain Cover for baby strollers.  From what she went through it seems that was no easy feat.  I have never used a rain cover myself… I always thought they looked like a bad idea and if you know anything about PVC (a plastic which contains a bevy of volatile organic compounds and phthalates) it’s not something you want to encase your infant in.  (Read more about the dangers of PVC.)

Anyway, Kirstin searched high and low and finally, after 4 days of digging and searching found a PVC-free, chlorine-free, and phthalate-free rain cover from Orbit Baby.  Orbit Baby makes the covers for their strollers but Kirstin, the wonderful woman she is, went to Babies R Us and tested it on every stroller in the store.  I love her for that!

Head over to Trying to be Greener and see what she found out about the covers fit.  She’s posted a nice list of strollers the cover did and did not fit on along with some photos of the cover fit over her own stroller.  Thanks Kirstin!

Nov

14

Mylicon Gas Relief Recalled for Risk of Metal

Filed Under Product Safety | Comments Off

I was tipped off by a friend on Facebook about a recent recall of Mylicon Gas Relief drops for infants.  Apparently, Johnson & Johnson and Merck Pharmaceuticals is voluntarily recalling 12,000 units of Infants’ MYLICON® Gas Relief Dye Free Non-Staining Drops 1 oz. manufactured after October 5, 2008 in the 1oz plastic bottles due to determining that some bottles could include metal fragments that were generated during the manufacturing process.  (Lot #’s are SMF007 and SMF008)

I don’t have experience with this product but I know many parents use it so if you have a bottle in your home, please check the lot numbers to see if you have a bottle that has been recalled. You can obtain the Lot numbers directly from Mylicon’s website. They provide instructions on the press release to obtain a refund:

Consumers can find the lot numbers on the bottom of the box containing the product and also on the lower left side of the sticker on the product bottle.

Consumers who purchased Infants’ MYLICON® GAS RELIEF DYE FREE drops non-staining included in this recall should immediately stop using the product and contact the company at 1-800-222-9435 (Monday – Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. EST) or via the internet at www.mylicon.com for instructions regarding how to dispose of the product and request a replacement or refund.

Visit Mylicon.com for further details.

Oct

20

State Attorney Generals Call for BPA Ban

Filed Under Articles, Bisphenol-A, Product Safety | Comments Off

The attorney generals in New Jersey, Connecticut and Delaware are urging makers of plastic bottles to eliminate the use of BPA in their production.  Letters were sent to 11 manufacturers.

“I am alarmed by recent studies confirming that BPA leaches from these products into the foods they hold,” Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said in the letters.

The request for a voluntary recall may not be as strong an action as some states have tried, but with more and more companies starting to phase out products that contain BPA, every bit of pressure helps.  You can find the full article here.

Source: Associated Press

Oct

7

What is Melamine? A Crash Course

Filed Under Product Safety | Comments Off

Lead is so 2007.  This year it’s all about Melamine.  All the cool kids are worrying about it. First it was found in dog food, then baby formula, then Mr. Brown coffee and now, the FDA is recalling Blue Cat Flavor Drinks.  We’ve gotten a lot of questions about melamine dishware in the past weeks and we’ve been trying to find as much useful information as possible. Here’s what we know.

Melamine is an organic compound that is often combined with formaldehyde to produce melamine resin, a synthetic polymer which is fire resistant and heat tolerant. Melamine resin is a very versatile material with a highly stable structure. Uses for melamine include whiteboards, floor tiles, kitchenware, fire retardant fabrics, and commercial filters.

Melamine resin is manufactured by mixing urea with formaldehyde under heat and pressure. The substances begin to polymerize and are forced into a mold which will create the desired shape.  The materials finish polymerizing and create a finished product, melamine resin.  This resin is what is used in many kitchen items.

We uncovered (Thanks for finding this Jaime!) a report from the National Toxicology Program that states,

Melamine resin, a hard thermosetting polymer made from melamine and formaldehyde, is widely used in the US in the form of kitchenware, including plates, bowls, mugs and utensils. Reports in the literature indicate that some kitchenware based on melamine resin leach considerable amounts of melamine monomer. A migration of up to 2.5 mg melamine/ 100 cm2 was observed under conditions that simulate an exposure to hot acidic foods…

I’m sure with enough digging we’ll find that any migration that occurs is low and “suitable for public safety”, especially if you ask the FDA.  But I am just not comfortable with melamine resin or formaldehyde leaching into my kids food when I take such care to give him something healthy.  The NTP confirms that more research is needed.

Healthy Child Healthy Word’s Janelle Sorensen found some interesting and disturbing information regarding melamine as well and has changed her position on using it for kids.  Please check out her latest article on Melamine here.  The Soft Landing posted some great info on Melamine yesterday too, read that here.  She brings up another good point: Melamine isn’t recyclable. Boo!

At SafeMama, we like to sway on the side of safety (even though some of you think we’re just trying to make your life difficult) but we don’t take chances when it comes to kids.  So for now, we don’t feel comfortable recommending Melamine dishware.  If you have some, there are a couple things you can do to limit exposure to chemical leaching:

  • Don’t microwave, boil or otherwise heat melamine dishware or utensils, ever.
  • Hand wash all melamine in warm water with mild soap.
  • Ditch ‘em (or use them for something other than food) and opt for a safer material like bamboo, stainless steel, or BPA-free plastic (same heat rules apply here though, no microwave, hand wash)

I can hear you screaming at me already… “Are you kidding me?  If its not one thing its another.  Just when I thought I was doing the right thing its the wrong thing.  Maybe I should just move into a CAVE and eat off the ground!“  That wasn’t you?  Oh that’s right, it was me saying it to myself.

Before you freak out on me: We’ve compiled a new SafeMama Cheat Sheet of Safer Dishware to aide you in choosing dishes for your wee ones!  It’s a new list and it will grow so check back for new additons.

Oct

6

SafeMama’s Safer Dishware Cheat Sheet: BPA, PVC & Phthalate Free Dishes

Filed Under ** Cheat Sheets!, Bisphenol-A, PVC Free, Product Safety | Comments Off

We’ve gotten the request for a cheat sheet for dishware so here is our list of favorites. We made sure all the items listed are free of Bisphenol-A, PVC and Phthalates and we listed as much of a diverse selection as possible for those who are looking for alternatives to plastic we made sure to include options for you too. Note: There is no melamine dishware on this list. You can read why here. (Last Updated: October 23, 2008)

Plates, Dishes, Bowls, Cups

Utensils

  • Bambu Kids Organic Bamboo Utensils
  • TreBimbi Dinnerware Utensils
  • Munchkin: Soft-Tip Infant Spoons,
  • Boon: Benders Fork & Spoon, Modware Utensils, Squirt (new version)
  • IKEA: Kalas 18 Piece Cutlery set
  • SteadyCo: Cutlery
  • Williams Sonoma: Kids Stainless Flatware
  • One Step Ahead: My Very Own Flatware stainless steel (3 and up)
  • Gerber: Graduates Kiddy kutlery, Graduates, Tossables, Scoopin’ Spoons, Safety Fork and Spoon

Snack Containers

Lunchboxes, Food Containers

Wait! You can also find a more comprehensive list of our Safer Lunchbox Picks located here.

Have a product you think belongs on this list? Let us know! Please link back to SafeMama.com if you share this so we can keep this site going! Thanks!

Take the headache out of no-toxic shopping by visiting our friends at The Soft Landing. Use coupon code “SAFEMAMA10″ for 10% Off!. They have a safer Dish and Cup Guide as well. Have a look.

Oct

3

New Study Says Booster Seats May Be Unsafe

Filed Under Car Safety, Product Safety | Comments Off

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute reported Wednesday that 13 booster seats don’t put children in an optimal position to be protected in a car crash. IIHS President Adrian Lund said the 13 boosters they don’t recommend “may increase restraint use by making children more comfortable, but they don’t position belts for optimal protection.” The IIHS rated booster seats in 3 groups, 13 were not recommended, 10 were rated “best bets” and 5 booster seats were “good bets”:

Not Recommended by IIHS:

  • Safety Angel Ride Ryte backless
  • Cosco/Dorel (Eddie Bauer) Summit
  • Graco CarGo Zephyr
  • Evenflo Big Kid Confidence
  • Cosco/Dorel Traveler
  • Compass B505
  • Compass B510
  • Evenflo Generations
  • Dorel/Safety 1st (Eddie Bauer) Prospect
  • Cosco Highback Booster
  • Cosco/Dorel Alpha Omega
  • Evenflo Chase Comfort Touch
  • Safety 1st/Dorel Intera

Best Bets by IIHS:

  • Graco TurboBooster backless with clip
  • Fisher-Price Safe Voyage backless with clip
  • Combi Kobuk backless with clip
  • Fisher-Price Safe Voyage
  • Britax Parkway
  • LaRoche Bros. Teddy Bear
  • Safeguard Go backless with clip
  • Volvo booster cushion
  • Recaro Young Style
  • Britax Monarch

Good Bets (when used as a highback, were acceptable):

  • Graco TurboBooster
  • Safety Angel Ride Ryte
  • Recaro Young Sport
  • Combi Kobuk
  • Safety 1st/Dorel Apex 65

Important!: Your child needs to be in a proper height/weight restraint.  PERIOD. The government recommends car seats for children up to 40 pounds and booster seats for children over 40 pounds until they are 8 years old or 4 feet 9 inches tall. All children should ride in the back seat until age 13. It’s about the fit with a booster seat.  Boosters act as a way to safely position seat belts on your child’s body and should:

  • The seat belt is meant to be routed across a child’s lower hips and mid-shoulders instead of the abdomen because the liver and spleen are more vulnerable to injuries.
  • Seat should be properly installed.  Call your local Fire Department to find out how to have the installation checked.

“No matter how a booster did in our evaluations, parents still need to see how it fits their child in their car,” Lund advises. He urges them “not to rush to buy a new booster if theirs isn’t among the top seats. Check how it fits and remember, it’s better for children to ride restrained in any booster than to let them ride unbuckled.”

Before you toss your booster seat read through this information provided by the IIHS.  CBS News has a neat little video as well:

Sources and interesting reading:
CBS News Article with video
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
Nature’s Child Blog

Oct

2

Review: The Safe Sippy Revisited

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The Safe SippyWe reviewed The Safe Sippy a while back and weren’t totally in love.  The good people who make The Safe Sippy have re-engineered the cups valve and cap slightly to improve on what was already a great cup.  Now? The cup is pretty awesome.  The interior and main portion of the cup is stainless steel which is one of the best alternatives on the market.  While plastic is ok, over time can wear and eventually leach chemicals into food and liquids-which is why we usually recommend replacing them.  The valve under the lid is made of non-toxic silicone and has been redesigned slightly to ensure leak prevention while allowing regular flow.  The lid is designed  to be a little wider than the body of the cup to help prevent dents and dings, while the cup is cuddled up into a rubber sleeve to protect the steel and keep it insulated.  It does aide in the grip factor too.

This cup is well thought out and designed to be the best sippy cup on the market.  The Safe Sippy people sent us a cup to try out since they’ve redesigned the lid threads and the valve.  I am happy to report that now, this cup doesn’t leak one bit.  To be totally fair, I gave our sample to a mom who works at the gym daycare I go to (hi!!) to get a totally unbiased opinion.  She handed the cup over to her toddler for the rough and tough tests and they passed with flying colors.  She reports:

“This cup doesn’t drip so it’s great for the car and at night in bed.  The steel body keeps liquids cold longer and the soft grip cover makes holding it easy for toddlers.“  She thought it was also “easy to clean and take apart and it’s a cool looking cup so her little guy was drawn to it.”

The only cons if you can call them that were that it’s heavier than traditional plastic cups so it’s better for older toddlers who can handle it, and she thought the handles were a tiny bit weak.  But the handles are completely removable so it’s not a make it or break it feature.

We are really pleased with the adjustments The Safe Sippy received and think it’s definitely one of the best “safe” sippy cups on the market.  SafeMama Approved!

Get Your Own: You can find a list of retailers on their website or you can grab one on Amazon.com

Sep

25

Similac SimplePac: Is It BPA Free? We Can’t Tell.

Filed Under Bisphenol-A, Product Safety | Comments Off

I intended to answer the burning question “Does the new Similac packaging contain BPA?” in Dear SafeMama yesterday.  But after I spoke with Similac®, I decided it warranted it’s own post because frankly, I am getting tired of trying to decipher their carefully orchestrated responses.

Here is what we know and what Similac is allowing us to know.  The new SimplePac™ container and lid is made of High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) which indicated to me that the plastic container itself is BPA Free.  That much I know.  Here is where it gets tricky.  The representatives I spoke to, and I spoke to at least 3 because they kept transferring me when I pressed them for more information, will say this and only this:

“No portion of the container that comes in contact with the formula contains BPA.”

See the part I underlined?  That’s what concerns me.  They will not deviate from this scripted statement that I am sure their very expensive legal team created for them.  After the second rep transferred me to Pam, the Customer Relations representative specialist or whatever, I pressed further because I am not satisfied unless they say “Yes Ma’am, rest assured the whole thing is BPA Free.”

I asked Pam about the foil seal that typically is present in formula containers to preserve the product on the shelf.  I had no idea if this product even had one, but she confirmed it does.  She would not however provide me with any information regarding the foil seal, what it was made of and whether or not the foil is coated with an epoxy resin.  Many times those coatings do contain BPA.  She told me:

“We don’t have any information about that, I’m sorry.” And refused to delve any further claiming ignorance and denying she had any information to give me on the matter.  No information?  That sounds weird considering the company most CERTAINLY knows what its made of and whats on or not on it.   They don’t have any information they want parents to know is what it really means to me.

The main problem I have with their statement is that I don’t know what “comes in contact with the formula” means if they are being so strict in what they tell consumers.  Does it mean “only if you don’t turn it upside down so the formula doesn’t rest on the foil seal” count too?  Their resistance to disclose the materials on the foil seal makes me wonder.

Pam informed me that I should encourage our readers to call Similac if they have any questions.  Do go ahead and do that SafeParents.   Similac has a toll free number 1-800-232-7677 Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., CST/CDT.  They would rather tell you, the ignorant consumer who doesn’t understand what HDPE is, themselves and bank on the fact that no one will ask the questions we really want answers to.

Bottom Line: To answer the original question “Is the new Similac SimplePac packaging BPA free?”  The answer for now is “Maybe.”  Or in Similac’s words “the part that comes in contact with the formula” is.

Sep

23

Consumer Beware: Get your BPA Information from the Source

Filed Under Bisphenol-A, Food Safety, Product Safety | Comments Off

I’ve been meaning to post this for a while but only until a reader wrote in to let us know about a great “BPA Free” find did I find the hook I needed to effectively write this.  A reader (thank you to our lovely readers!  We adore you!) wrote in to let us know she found out that Little Bear Snack Foods packaged their canned bean dips in BPA Free cans.  And right there on their website it said,

“The cans are made from steel. We know we do not use biphenyl A.  The cans are lined with a food grade material.”

I was enthused that we may have found another canned food aside from Eden’s Organic Beans that were packaged in BPA Free cans.  The misspelling of the term Bisphenol-A had me a little worried though so I wrote in to the company to confirm.  After a day or two I got back an email from the parent company, Celestial-Hain, stating that BPA was safe, and approved by the FDA and that their cans only have trace amounts that would cause no harm to humans.  I’ll paste their full response below.  I was confused that they had a statement on their site (which I just noticed has since been removed) that they do not use BPA and they’d sent me information confirming their packaging does contain BPA.

I wrote back again to gain some insight but of course, I have not gotten a response back from the company.  It’s unfortunate a company was so misinformed or felt the need to misinform their customers in order to gain their trust.

This is the lesson I so desperately needed some of our readers to learn.  Find out for your self. I am by no means saying you can’t trust anyone.  There are many of us out here on the Internet striving to provide valid, correct and useful information regarding BPA and its safety.  That said, I think it’s extremely important that you not take everything you read at face value.  Write to these companies, ask questions, verify suspicions, educate yourself. The more noise these companies hear from consumers, the sooner our BPA Free options will increase.

I know many of our readers have been calling in to companies to find out the BPA status of products and reporting back here to us.  We’ve gotten many more emails letting us know your findings in the past few months.  (THANK YOU!) That means more of you are taking things into your own hands instead of relying on the Internet.  For that, I want to applaud our SafeMama Readers for taking the extra steps to get accurate information.  Keep it up SafeParents!

Here is the response I received from Celestial Hain:

M. Scoleri,

Thank you for taking the time to contact us regarding our Little Bear Product. We strive to maintain the highest quality products and appreciate your patronage.

Most metal food and beverage packaging has a thin coating of an epoxy containing BPA on the interior surface. Bisphenol A (BPA) is a compound used in most metal food and beverage packaging. The interior surface of the can has a thin coating of an epoxy containing BPA, which protects public health by preventing corrosion of the can and contamination of food and beverage by not coming in contact with the metal. This is one of the very few FDA approved coatings that will provide the safety and shelf life that consumers expect from our products. Tests have indicated that trace amounts of BPA may be present in these can coatings. The minute amounts detected are well below levels deemed to be of concern for public health according to the FDA. The United States Center for Disease Control and The American Council on Science and Health, along with other Regulatory agencies worldwide, have extensively researched Bisphenol A and concluded there is no risk to human health. All coatings that come in contact with our products undergo stringent testing and comply with US Food and Drug Administration guidelines.

As one of our valued customers, your satisfaction is very important to us and we will share your comments with our Leadership Team. If we can be of further assistance, please feel free to contact us at 1-800-434-4246, Monday through Friday from 7AM - 5PM Mountain Time.

James

Consumer Response Representative  | Ref # 1726130

Sep

19

Some Sassy Products Contain BPA

Filed Under Bisphenol-A, Product Safety | Comments Off

We were disappointed to hear that some Sassy products contain BPA, in spite of their previous reassurances that they do not. Thanks to our friends at The Soft Landing, we were made aware of this new development.

Sassy has confirmed that the following do actually contain BPA:

  • Extra Gentle Soft Tip Spoon - BPA in handle
  • EZ Grip Feeding Bowl and Color Change Spoon - BPA in spoon
  • Snack Time Infa-Trainer Cup - BPA in cap over straw
  • Flexi Grip Toddler Fork and Spoon
  • Color Change Fork and Spoon

The Soft Landing has previously sold some of these items as BPA-free and they are immediately offering an exchange or store credit for anyone who has bought these products from them. You can contact them regarding returns at sassyrecall [at] thesoftlanding.com.

They are encouraging Sassy to issue a manufacturer’s recall for these products, and we agree with that. If they originally sold these as BPA-free and now concede that they aren’t, they should offer a refund to anyone who requests it. While we’re certainly glad that Sassy admitted there was an error, this is a serious blow to their credibility.

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