In the last three months, mesothelioma fears have led to more than 30 children’s toys being recalled in the United Kingdom after asbestos was found in play sand. The discovery of the toxic fibers in Hobbycraft’s toy led to further testing and the government taking action against products ranging from candle-making kits to stretchy rubber toys.
Asbestos-Contaminated Children’s Products Prompt Concerns About Mesothelioma
Inhaling or ingesting asbestos fibers has been directly linked to mesothelioma and other cancers, and the UK prohibits the sale of products containing the carcinogen in any quantity. The affected toys all reportedly contain asbestos-contaminated sand from mines in China, where labeling rules are less rigorous. The sand is used in craft kits, sand art sets, and squishy toys.
Concerns about mesothelioma risks from contaminated toys were first raised last January, when the news publication The Guardian reported that the retailer Hobbycraft had withdrawn its Giant Box of Craft kits from sale after a customer alerted the company to asbestos traces in bottles of colored sand. The Office for Product Safety and Standards subsequently issued an advisory note for traders about the most reliable tests, and since then, laboratories have reported a surge in asbestos testing requests from stores and manufacturers.
Consumer Group Calls Asbestos Contamination a Failure in Safety Checks
The consumer group Which? said the number of asbestos-related recalls in the last three months suggests serious failures in safety checks meant to prevent mesothelioma. The organization’s head of consumer protection policy warned, “The Office for Product Safety and Standards needs to take action and ensure proper checks are being carried out to keep dangerous products off the shelves,” noting that asbestos-containing toys could still be sold online, where regulation is limited. Rigorous testing methods revealed that products certified as safe were contaminated, leaving children vulnerable to significant health impacts.
Exacerbating concerns was the fact that, despite mesothelioma concerns over asbestos-contaminated play sand having prompted government recalls and school closures in Australia and New Zealand in November, the government had allowed similar products to remain on UK shelves. “It took an article in the Guardian to force the UK authorities to engage with the potential threat to public health,” said Laurie Kazan-Allen of the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat. “The UK recalls since then are a result of individual tests carried out by manufacturers and sellers, and not of testing by the UK authorities.”
Rigorous testing for asbestos is essential for securing public safety and preventing future mesothelioma diagnoses. For more information on how the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net can help those diagnosed with this terrible disease, call us at 1-800-692-8608.
