Introduction: Tamara Rubin is an independent advocate for consumer goods safety, and she is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children. She began testing consumer goods for toxicants in 2009 and was the parent-advocate responsible for finding Lead in the popular fidget spinner toys in 2017. She uses high-precision XRF testing (a scientific method used by the Consumer Product Safety Commission) to test consumer goods for metallic contaminants – including Lead, Cadmium, Mercury, and Arsenic.
XRF focus on pink hearts:
- Lead (Pb): 15,300 +/- 700 ppm
- Cadmium (Cd): 269 +/- 56 ppm
- Arsenic (As): 1,678 +/- 281 ppm
- Barium (Ba): 1,566 +/- 422 ppm
- Zinc (Zn): 623 +/- 84 ppm
- Nickel (Ni): 95 +/- 57 ppm
- Vanadium (V): 1,442 +/- 951 ppm
- Titanium (Ti): 16,300 +/- 700 ppm
- Chlorine (Cl): 8,927 +/- 1,270 ppm
XRF focus on tulip (pink and green):
- Lead (Pb): 5,159 +/- 192 ppm
- Arsenic (As): 691 +/- 110 ppm
- Barium (Ba): 1,479 +/- 332 ppm
- Chromium (Cr): 206 +/- 37 ppm
- Zinc (Zn): 267 +/- 44 ppm
- Nickel (Ni): 145 +/- 41 ppm
- Iron (Fe): 244 +/- 93 ppm
- Titanium (Ti): 7,204 +/- 295 ppm
- Chlorine (Cl): 5,570 +/- 940 ppm
Are the results reported above accurate?
Test results reported here on my blog are science-based, accurate, and replicable. Test results reported here are from tests that were done for a minimum of 60 seconds each (unless otherwise noted), and repeated multiple times, to confirm the results. As with all the testing reported here on my blog, a freshly-calibrated high-precision XRF instrument testing in Consumer Goods mode was used to test the item pictured here.
How much Lead is too much Lead?
There is no total content limit for total measurable Lead (as detectable and measured with an XRF instrument) in modern dishware. Limits have only been set for the total amount of any detectable Lead that is leaching at the time of manufacture – as measured by leach-testing. However, for context, for modern items intended for use by children to be legal (and not subject to recall) the paint or coating of these items needs to be below 90 ppm Lead, and the substrate of the item needs to fall below 100 ppm Lead when tested. If this dish were made today and “intended to be used by children”, it would be illegal. I consider dishes and kitchenware that test positive for Lead at levels below 90 ppm to be “Lead-safe”. [Note: my personal preference is to have all of the items in my own kitchen be 100% Lead-free – not just “Lead-safe”.]
Are you new here?
For those new to my website, please check out the menu in the header of the website for more information about how I test things (and my background, etc.) On each post you can also click on any of the keyword tabs at the top of the post to find more items in that category. Here’s the post discussing the type of testing I do, and the specific instrument I use to detect, analyze and confirm metals content, and ultimately produce the resultant data for each item reported here – link.
As always, thank you for reading and for sharing my posts. Please let me know if you have any questions!
Tamara Rubin
#LeadSafeMama
I recognize that this is vintage, and therefore the results are not surprising. The pink heart above seems to be rather a pastel color, yet has an alarming amount of lead content. I always try to figure out the “why” behind the use of lead, and one of the reasons usually provided is that it assists in producing bright colors and/or an iridescent quality in the finished product. This doesn’t seem to be the case here. I have also read that adding lead to paint makes it dry quicker, which to me is counterintuitive, but I do understand that, if true, it would be an economic incentive to using it in manufacturing processes. I’m curious about other potential reasons, maybe simply tradition? “That is the way we have always done it….” The amount of lead seems too much to be simply a contaminant, I would think… So, if it were intentional, what do you think would be the reasoning?
Hi Julia!
In this case I think paint on glass is often leaded to make it stick to glass substrates better, just as metal items (even modern metal items) are also often painted with Lead paint. Other similar examples are the painted markings on baby bottles (found in recent years), painted markings on fairly recent Pyrex measuring cups and painted markings on the glass carafe inside many French press coffee makers.
Thanks for commenting! I hope you are staying safe and healthy during these complicated times.
Tamara
How do I know then what is safe and what is not.
I have the set, Forever Yours. So what do I do with a set of 12? I won’t give them away! Also, any daft on Corelle’s Farm Fresh?
Thank you!
Here’s the overview post about Corelle (I don’t have them all listed by name so it might be better to look for them via descriptors):
https://tamararubin.com/2019/12/breaking-news-12-26-19-corelle-recommends-using-their-pre-2005-dishes-only-as-decorative-pieces-due-to-concerns-for-high-levels-of-lead/
Here’s the post about efficiently searching the blog:
https://tamararubin.com/2020/12/how-to-use-the-lead-safe-mama-website-video/
Here’s my post about disposal:
https://tamararubin.com/2019/12/what-should-i-do-with-my-lead-contaminated-dishes-to-toss-or-not-to-toss/
Here’s how to send in a piece for testing:
https://tamararubin.com/2019/08/tamara-can-i-send-you-one-of-my-dishes-to-test-for-lead/