Published: Sunday – July 3, 2022
Given all federal agencies agree that there is no safe level of Lead exposure for humans, and also given that in 2008 the Consumer Product Safety Commission set the level of 90 ppm Lead as being the limit for allowable Lead in the paint, glaze or coating of an item intended for use by children – I would not personally be comfortable eating off of these dishes (and definitely would never let any child use one of these).
They may have been “safe” (determined by independent testing at the time of manufacture to be non-leaching for Lead) on the day they left the factory (about 40 years ago, now – as the owner reported that she purchased these in the 1980s), but there is no guarantee that over time, with age and use, they have not/will not become unsafe. This is especially possible if the item is used with with heated foods — or acidic foods, such as tomato-based sauces, vinegars, or lemon juice, for example. Given these dishes are already “crazing” (the surface glaze on this one example is visibly deteriorating), they are likely leaching some of the Lead from the surface glaze when used today.
Now that we know for certain (using XRF testing) that there is a very high level of Lead in the glaze of this plate (see specific readings below), it is far simpler and less expensive to buy new dishes than it would be to send a dish like this to a lab to do leach-testing to confirm how much of the Lead might be leaching from the dish at this point [and under what conditions]…so many years after they were manufactured! Consequently – in adopting a #KnowBetterDoBetter philosophy and a guiding principle of not allowing any Lead in your kitchen (a great first step in making a safer home for yourself and your family) – I would recommend purchasing new dishes if you own these (and not using these dishes for food use purposes at all at this point) You can read more about these concerns specifically in this article – link.
“But I only want to use them on the holidays – is that okay?”
On this particular dish – given the age, combined with the Lead level and the degree of visible crazing in the glaze, I would say this absolutely is not safe to use – even “only for the holidays”. This is especially the case because of the design, which is a Christmas tree with presents and a teddy bear underneath — so very likely to be used (and more than once) by a young child during the holiday season. Lead accumulates in our bodies from multiple sources over our lifetime, and if we can eliminate even just one potential exposure source, we should. My children have permanent brain damage, learning disabilities, and other health impairments from Lead exposure. If you have the opportunity to protect your family from even incidental Lead exposure, in my opinion that is an opportunity you should take. You can read more about the concern for cumulative exposure on this link. This link discusses symptoms of Lead exposure in adults, which may also be of interest to some readers.
Below are the full test results for the dish pictured.
Reading #1) Center of the food surface of the plate – on the Christmas tree design
60-second reading
- Lead (Pb): 87,000 +/- 2,500 ppm
- Cadmium (Cd): non-detect
- Tin (Sn): 3,291 +/- 163 ppm
- Mercury (Hg): non-detect
- Selenium (Se): non-detect
- Barium (Ba): 1,972 +/- 135 ppm
- Chromium (Cr): non-detect
- Antimony (Sb): non-detect
- Zinc (Zn): 1,334 +/- 78 ppm
- Zirconium (Zr): 265 +/- 23 ppm
- Iron (Fe): 323 +/- 140 ppm
- Cobalt (Co): 248 +/- 79 ppm
- No other metals detected in consumer goods mode.
Reading #2) Scalloped white edge of the food surface of the plate
60-second reading
- Lead (Pb): 61,900 +/- 1,500 ppm
- Cadmium (Cd): non-detect
- Tin (Sn): non-detect
- Mercury (Hg): non-detect
- Selenium (Se): non-detect
- Barium (Ba): 1,031 +/- 76 ppm
- Chromium (Cr): non-detect
- Antimony (Sb): non-detect
- Iron (Fe): 206 +/- 114 ppm
- No other metals detected in consumer goods mode.
Reading #3) Green back mark / logo mark of the dish
60-second reading
- Lead (Pb): 82,500 +/- 2,300 ppm
- Cadmium (Cd): non-detect
- Tin (Sn): 163 +/- 22 ppm
- Mercury (Hg): non-detect
- Selenium (Se): non-detect
- Barium (Ba): 1,960 +/- 126 ppm
- Chromium (Cr): non-detect
- Antimony (Sb): non-detect
- Zinc (Zn): 490 +/- 45 ppm
- Zirconium (Zr): 696 +/- 37 ppm
- Iron (Fe): 257 +/- 130 ppm
- No other metals detected in consumer goods mode.
For some inexpensive Lead-free dish ideas, check out this link.
For those new to this website:
Tamara Rubin is a multiple-Federal-award-winning independent advocate for consumer goods safety and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children. Tamara’s sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in August of 2005. 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. Tamara uses XRF testing (a scientific method used by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission) to test consumer goods for toxicants (specifically heavy metals), including Lead, Cadmium, Mercury, Antimony, and Arsenic. All test results reported on this website are science-based, accurate, and replicable. Items (and separate components) are each tested multiple times, to confirm the test results for each component tested and reported on. Please click through to this link to learn more about the testing methodology used for the test results discussed and reported on this website.
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