A guide to safe, PVC-free school supplies

With school opening just a sigh away (parents can now heave a collective sigh of relief as their restless school kids troop back to school), a waste and pollution watchdog group diligently did its homework, combing the market for unsafe carcinogen-laden school supplies.

Sifting through back-to-school promos, EcoWaste Coalition bought some items and posthaste sent them to SGS, an international testing company for phthalate analysis. Toxicologist Dr. Erle Castillo pointed out the potential effects of phthalates on children’s health.

EcoWaste Coalition advised consumers to avoid school supplies made of polyvinyl chloride plastic, or those marked “PVC,” “V” or “3”, as these may contain elevated concentrations of toxic phthalates.

Phthalates, a class of plasticizers added to PVC to make it soft and flexible, are known to disrupt the body’s hormonal systems.

The Endocrine Society and IPEN note that “phthalate exposure is linked to genital abnormalities in boys, reduced sperm counts, decreased ‘male typical’ play in boys, endometriosis, and elements of metabolic disruption, including obesity.”

The US EPA reports that children “have the highest exposures to phthalates, often greater than those in adults due to increased intakes of food, water, and air on a bodyweight basis, as well as children’s unique exposure pathways such as mouthing of objects and ingestion of non-food items.”

Phthalates get into the human body through ingestion, inhalation, and skin absorption.

Found in the samples tested was DEHP, one of two types of phthalate, which is classified as a “probable human carcinogen” by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The school supplies tested were purchased from retail outlets in Divisoria, Quiapo, and Cubao. Of the five samples tested, four were found positive for toxic phthalates DEHP and/or DINP, namely:

1. A Cat Man ballpen with yellow PVC accessory, with 31.80% DEHP.

2. A yellow PVC raincoat with tiger design, with 17.10% DEHP and 0.13% DINP.

3. A PVC plastic envelope with penguin design, with 13.10% DEHP and 0.12% DINP.

4. A PVC Princess Mica shoulder bag, with 1.87% DEHP and 0.16% DINP.

The only item which passed the lab test was a plastic ID holder with Minion design.

Department of Health Administrative Order 2009-0005-A, as amended in 2011, bans phthalates DEHP, DBP and BBP in concentrations exceeding 0.1% in the manufacturing of toys. Phthalates DINP, DIDP, and DNOP above 0.1% are banned in toys that can be placed in a child’s mouth.

Thony Dizon, EcoWaste Coalition’s Project Protect asks, “DEHP and DINP are restricted in children’s toys not only in the Philippines but also in Europe and the US. So why are we finding them in very high concentrations in school supplies, which, like toys, are directly handled and used by children?”

Last year, the group found high levels of DEHP and/or DINP in two backpacks, two rain-gears, one lunch bag, two kiddie boxing gloves, and two swimming toys.

“The unregulated use of PVC-based children’s products is not only a public health issue, but an environmental one as well,” warns Dizon. “Burning PVC products at the end of their useful lives will generate extremely toxic pollutants known as dioxins.”

He appeals to consumers, “For the health of our kids and the ecosystems, we ask our parents to buy PVC-free school supplies. At the same time, we ask the government to extend the ban on toxic phthalates in toys to all children’s products, including childcare articles and school supplies.”

So, how can parents avoid phthalates in school supplies? EcoWaste Coalition gives this back-to-school guide to PVCfree school supplies:

• Avoid school supplies made of vinyl plastic or PVC plastic, or those marked “3,” “V” or “PVC.”

• Avoid backpacks with shiny plastic designs as they often contain PVC and may contain lead.

• Avoid modelling clays made of PVC.

• Avoid notebooks containing metal spirals with colored plastic coating that may contain PVC.

• Avoid metal paper clips coated with PVC plastic. In addition, EcoWaste Coalition is appealing to all manufacturers of school supplies and other children’s products to switch to non-PVC materials and to disclose the chemical ingredients of their products, as well as to provide health and safety instructions and warnings for the guidance of consumers.

Do your homework, all ye dear parents, as your children go back to school.