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Question from Mir

 

My kids have been begging for toy dinosaurs.  I am looking for your advice on the toxicity levels of a few, and what you’d do 😉

Depending on your answers, I think I may just make these ‘outside toys’.  Please let me know if the risks of any of these materials, in your opinion, are still too high.

Most of the mass-produced ones seem to be made of vinyl, often described as “PVC-free vinyl”.  Often I just can’t find the materials.

They like these (which are PVC!)
https://www.target.com/p/jurassic-world-legacy-collection-tyrannosaurus-rex-pack/-/A-75561714

Materials are listed as:
ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene), Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC), Metal, Polypropylene

My gut tells me PVC-free vinyl probably isn’t any better, do you know?

Here are some seemingly safer options, what are your thoughts?

https://www.desertcart.us/products/117552392-adi-chai-non-toxic-dinosaur-toys-for-kids-above-3-years-set-of-6-dinosaurs

https://www.greenrubbertoys.com/products-page/dinosaurs/dinosaurs/

https://www.hearthsong.com/en/Ages/10-years-old/38%26rdquo%3BL-Giant%2C-Soft%2C-Flexible-T-Rex-Dinosaur/p/730469?fbclid=IwAR0DTXv8Mw1qZUeRR0XUkfFoQslCbdMHCuqTW9Bq44Y7e7FwalPC5zrTy6U

Battat:
These actually look like the COULD be decent because they may just be like ABS plastic?  But I can’t find details:
https://www.battatco.com/catalogs/2020/Terra_Catalogue_2020.pdf

And in another ‘low-toxin’ forum, these were suggested, although I can’t seem to find details:
Bullyland:
https://www.bullyland.de/en/products-worlds/dinosaur-park/

Sorry for all the links, I’m trying to do as much research as I can!

Lisa’s Answer

 

Based on the information available in the links, greenrubbertoys.com seems like the best bet.  While I have a couple questions about their products, I am impressed with the information they do provide.  They are made with natural latex.  You might want to confirm that it is 100% natural latex with no additives but even if it isn’t, it’s a better choice than the others. They provide testing results for each product line.  Toys with brown paint may contain very low levels of lead, far below allowable limits.  Have your kids wash their hands after playing and of course, make sure they don’t put them in their mouths.

I would avoid anything with PVC.  The Target item has PVC.  The Hearthsong item has a Prop 65 warning label for Toulene, which means it is probably made of PVC.  I couldn’t find any information on materials on the Bullyland, battatco or Desertcart websites.

PEVA and EVA are two non-PVC vinyls.  They are typically safer than PVC because they don’t contain chlorine, and don’t typically contain phthalates.  They are however, petroleum-based plastic and can contain a number of chemical additives.  For example formamide is a hotly debated ingredient in EVA foam.  I know it’s really hard to find toys that have no plastic.  I think the natural latex dinosaur is a good choice!

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