Over the past two years of providing in-home, XRF testing services to moms and dads, I have been asked to test everything from diapers and personal care items to toys and jewelry, mattresses and bathtubs to cutting boards and spices. I have tested the outside of homes, play areas inside and outside, I have been in crawlspaces, and in the corners of basements. What I’m searching for are heavy metals, potential toxic elements.
Each family has slightly different reason for having this search performed, some have autistic children; these children (I have been informed by the parents) have heavy metals in their blood, and in most cases, when searching the home, I find the same heavy metals found in the child’s blood, in the consumer products that they use regularly. Some parents are just environmental conscious; they want to ensure that their children are not exposed to potentially harmful products. Some people are purchasing homes; others are getting ready to do a remodel.
In each case, our goal is to identify these potentially harmful elements by utilizing X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analyzers to help people know what is in their environment. With knowledge of your environment, you can mitigate potential harm. Mitigating harm doesn’t mean not using the items found with heavy metals, but the knowledge means how you use them, or your children use them can be altered to reduce potential harm.
There are four components to each and every interaction with consumer products, items found in your personal environment; the individual, the item, the relationship between the individual and the item, and how the item is used.
Each and every person has different characteristics; we are all of different sizes or body mass, some people rarely get sick, yet others get sick often and thus we have different immune systems. Some people are allergic to things, yet others aren’t allergic to anything. We are all different in many ways.
The items we all use are different depending on what they are manufactured with, when they are manufactured and where. But for the sake of this discussion, we will presume that if a product/toy is manufactured in China or the US, bought in Los Angeles or New York, that product is made exactly the same.
Now the next two are somewhat related, the relationship and use of an item. How do you use the items around you and how do they interact with your in your environment. Do you put them in your mouth? Do they get abused and used or do they just sit there and not do anything? Are they exposed to a variety of different heats (sunlight, microwave, dishwasher, oven, etc)?
When I go to homes and provide XRF testing services, parents often ask me what to test (click here to see our typical findings). It is hard for me to tell a person, I don’t know what they use often or how they use the things in their home? But I can tell you that I am most concerned with the things that have a direct relationship to you and your children.
I want to test the toys that your children play with, the things that they may put in their mouths. I want to test the items that you cook with and eat or drink off of. I want to test the things that you may wear, like jewelry. I want to test your painted items that are cracking and flaking. I want to test the things that you interact with in your personal environment.
If I am at your home testing, I am happy to test anything you want me to test, honestly it is your dollar and if you want to know what something is made of, I will tell you. However, if you ask me to test a picture frame that is hanging on the wall, I am going to ask you “how is that picture frame interacting with your environment?”
I want to test things that have a direct interaction with you or your children’s personal environment. Now, if that picture frame is painted and that paint is cracking and chipping, of course I would want to test it because the dust from the paint chips directly interacts with your environment.
Now I have to stress, the information we share can be scary, it is not intended to be. We are simply informing people about the environment, and this information can positively impact lives. I should also mention that when we test and find something potentially harmful, like lead, it does not mean that it is going to harm you, but it is present in your environment.
I was at a home a few years ago testing; this family had beautiful ceramic dishes that they would use every day and eat off of. They were in very good condition and there appeared to be no major blemishes, cracks or chips, and the glaze was intact. But the dishes were found to contain over ten percent lead. The mom started to get upset, and considering they were a family heirloom, she didn’t want to part with the dishes.
I made a few suggestions. Can you make them a display piece in your home? How about this, instead of using them every day, you only use them on special occasions like birthdays. When all was said and done, this family’s potential exposure of lead was dramatically reduced from 365 days a year to about 5.
Just because a product has something harmful, doesn’t mean it will harm you, but it does mean that it contains something that potentially can and this is where the relationship and use of the item are important.
I believe that each individual will react differently to what is in their environment, just like someone who is allergic. Some people will be constantly exposed to smoke and never develop lung cancer, yet others will never smoke and develop lung cancer.
My goal is to help people and businesses know what is in their environment so that simple, educated decisions can be made that can positively affect lives, help businesses, create jobs and impact society.
Do you have any questions for me about items you would want tested?
