Wooden Hebrew building block for children (c. 2010): Lead-free, Arsenic-free, Mercury-free. Thank G-d!

Here’s a link to a product like this block on Amazon. [The designs and lettering look the same but the color scheme is different, however I am not 100% sure the blocks in the link are the same manufacturer as the block tested]: https://amzn.to/2OQsLPJ

Please note, different batches of painted wooden toys may come up with different XRF readings, given variations in trace metals found in paint from year-to-year. In general, new products (post-2011) made and sold today in the United States – sold specifically for use by children – should be free of toxic heavy metals like Lead, Cadmium, Antimony, Mercury and Arsenic. Even with these considerations, to be on the safe side I personally avoid any painted toys for children who are of an age where they might put them in their mouths.

When tested with a high-precision XRF Instrument, the wooden block (with colorful letters in Hebrew) pictured here (purchased new, c. 2010) had the following readings:

Blue Painted Areas

Silver (Ag): 19 +/- 5 ppm
Palladium (Pd): 14 +/- 4 ppm
Platinum (Pt): 131 +/- 43 ppm
Copper (Cu): 668 +/- 62 ppm
Indium (In): 40 +/- 9 ppm
Titanium (Ti): 14,700 +/- 700 ppm

Red Painted Areas

Silver (Ag): 20 +/- 5 ppm
Palladium (Pd): 15 +/- 4 ppm
Platinum (Pt): 123 +/- 44 ppm
Manganese (Mn): 1,119 +/- 309 ppm
Indium (In): 49 +/- 9 ppm
Vanadium (V): 92 +/- 42 ppm

Yellow Painted Areas

Silver (Ag): 16 +/- 3 ppm
Palladium (Pd): 13 +/- 3 ppm
Platinum (Pt): 81 +/- 27 ppm
Copper (Cu): 62 +/- 24 ppm
Indium (In): 45 +/- 6 ppm
Vanadium (V): 116 +/- 57 ppm
Titanium (Ti): 1,535 +/- 145 ppm

I am working on doing some additional testing on these blocks (with additional specific testing methodologies, given the likelihood of them being mouthed by young children), and will let you know if I come up with any noteworthy results. I am generally concerned with painted wooden toys pre-2011, however preliminary results for this particular product so far would definitely put it in the “safe” category.

As always, thank you for reading and for sharing my posts. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Tamara Rubin
#LeadSafeMama