Tests reveal lead in more toys

Many children’s products still on store shelves test positive for lead, and one brand-name toy made in China yielded such high levels that Consumer Reports has called for a federal investigation, the magazine said Monday.

In its December issue, Consumer Reports advises parents not to let children use the blood pressure cuff that is part of some Fisher-Price Medical Kit toys. The plastic cuff comes in several colors, but the advisory pertains only to the red cuff, said Donald Mays, a product safety director at the magazine.

A call to Fisher-Price was referred to a public relations company. That company did not immediately return calls seeking comment. Fisher-Price is owned by El Segundo-based Mattel Inc.

Mays said the magazine had tested six samples of the red toy cuff. In the worst finding, the magazine said, a cuff that had been played with for two years showed a total lead level of 10,000 parts per million.

There is no official standard for lead embedded in plastic. The standard for lead in paint and surface coatings on toys, which is more accessible than embedded lead, is 600 ppm.

Consumer Reports said it found lead in varying amounts in dishware, jewelry, glue stick caps, vinyl backpacks, children’s ceramic tea sets, and other items not on any federal recall list.