Toys' risk of lead paint hard to track

Belleville News-Democrat

September 29, 2007

Q. I'm a new grandma. My 18-month-old grandson lives in Seoul, South Korea, and I'm very concerned about the lead paint danger in toys, which seems to be so prevalent lately. Are the toys dangerous if they are not flaking and the child doesn't put them in his mouth? What about if they are toys he only plays with for the short time he is visiting here? What about toys that were purchased in Seoul for use in Seoul? Is there a test kit? Help!

-- Gracia Schlafly

A. I know you don't want to play with your grandson's health, but the federal government sounds like it's still at recess when it comes to reliable answers to your questions at a reasonable cost.

Your concerns, of course, are well-founded. Lead is a particularly wicked poison because the human body cannot rid itself of it. As a result, no amount of lead is safe, and even minute quantities may start to damage IQ and nerve function. Repeated exposure can build the body's lead level to where it starts to affect bones and major organs.

No, paint does not have to be chipping or flaking to be dangerous. Consider how a painted wooden toy will look worn and faded after a lot of use; that paint is going somewhere. (I can only hope the multicolored Tinker Toys I played with for hours on end as a kid were safe.)

Lead can escape from surfaces in paint dust. Lead can leach from the paint, too. That's why you're always warned to be sure the pottery you use to serve food and drink are safe for that purpose. And, as Dear Abby likely would be quick to tell you, it's a poor bet that a small child will never chew on a toy. Even if he doesn't, he could still transfer the toxin by sticking his hand in his mouth.

There doesn't seem much you can do other than go to government and toy company Web sites to see what products are being recalled this week.

If you do a Google or Dogpile search, you can find a gazillion relatively inexpensive lead testing kits for use in the home, but none is approved by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The Illinois Department of Health says they are not sanctioned because they are prone to both false positive (indicating lead where none exists) and false negative (not showing lead when it's there) results. Otherwise, you have to take a scraping and send it off to a lab, and that's expensive, not to mention a hassle.

When it comes to toys purchased overseas, all bets are off, because you likely have no idea of the quality of any particular country's monitoring standards. The best advice from the Consumer Product Safety Commission: Buy American-made toys here, ship them overseas -- and then keep an eye on those recalls.

Q. I have lost the key to my Lane cedar chest. The store where I bought it no longer handles Lane products, the local sales representative's phone number has been reassigned and a letter I wrote to the company in Virginia was returned. Please help me find a replacement key!

-- Fred Shrader, of Aviston

A. Relax, I have the key to your happiness.

First, some bad news: According to the serial and style numbers you sent me, your chest was made in 1976. The company no longer offers replacement keys to chests made before 1987.

But before you reach for a crowbar to get at all those sentimental treasures again, here's the good news: The company will send you free of charge a new lock -- yes, lock, latch, keys, screws, the whole schmear -- if you call them at toll-free (888) 856-8758. Instructions are included, and the woman I talked with assured me installation is a snap.

Should you need to reach them again, you can write Lane Furniture Industries at P.O. Box 1627, Highway 145 South, Tupelo, MS 38802, or simply go to www.lanefurniture.comon the Internet, find your problem and e-mail them.

Q. I am 74 years old and am an avid seven-day-a-week early morning (4:30-5:30 a.m.) walker. Now, every morning I see this very bright light up in the eastern sky. It is not an airplane because it does not move and is always in the exact same spot every morning. It is brighter and larger than any of the stars.

-- G.G. of Trenton

A. If it's big, bright, stationary and in the early morning eastern sky, there's only one possibility: You are looking at Earth's sister planet, Venus, which reaches its maximum brightness shortly before sunrise or sunset. That's why you'll often hear folks call it the morning star or evening star.

'You can't miss it,' said Alan MacRobert, senior editor of Sky & Telescope magazine. 'It's by far the brightest thing up there. It far outshines Sirius, which is the the second brightest thing in the morning sky and the brightest actual star.'

And, like the star that led the Wise Men, you'll be enjoying Venus on your sojourns for weeks to come.

'It is only getting higher in the sky week by week,' MacRobert said of the planet named for the Roman goddess of love and beauty despite it being smothered by bright, reflective clouds of sulfuric acid. 'It's giving a fine showing as the morning star, which will continue for several more months.'

I only hope you're as visible to any traffic at that hour of the a.m.

Q. A few weeks ago, I read something about a microwave shelf you could buy over the Internet from Premier Stove in Belleville. I need it yesterday, and I lost the contact information.

-- C.W., of Belleville

A. If your kitchen seems too cramped for even a new Salad Shooter, you can cook up more space by buying a Top Shelf from Peerless-Premier Appliance Co.

After buying the rights to the product in 1990, the local company switched the shelf material from wood to textured steel. Now for $99.95, you get a kit that can be put together in 15 minutes, fits most 24- and 30-inch stoves and holds 100 pounds.

Find it at www.premiertopshelf.com or give them a call at 233-0475 or toll-free 800-858-5844.

Send your questions to Roger Schlueter, Belleville News-Democrat, 120 S. Illinois St., P.O. Box 427, Belleville, IL 62222-0427 or rschlueter@bnd.com

Copyright © 2007 Belleville News-Democrat, All Rights Reserved.