Chemical linked to low sperm count, obesity and cancer found in dummies, tests find | Children’s health

A chemical linked to sexual development disorders, obesity and cancer has been found in child mannequins produced by three major European brands.

Mannequins made by Dutch multinational Philips, Swiss oral hygiene specialists Curaprox and French toy brand Sophie la Girafe were found to contain bisphenol A (BPA), according to laboratory tests by Czech consumer organization dTest. Philips said it carried out subsequent testing and found no BPA, and Sophie la Giraffe said the amount detected was negligible.

All three mannequins were marketed as either “BPA-free” or “natural rubber.”

BPA is a synthetic chemical used in the production of plastics, but it is structurally similar to the female hormone estrogen, which it mimics in humans and other animals.

Chloe Topping, a Chem Trust campaigner who was not involved in the study, said: “The health effects of BPA are wide-ranging: breast cancer, prostate cancer, endometriosis, heart disease, obesity, diabetes, changes in the immune system, effects on reproduction, brain development and behaviour, including in children.”

Children are especially vulnerable, “because they're still developing, their organs are very sensitive to disruption,” Topping said, since exposure to BPA early in life or in the womb has been linked to decreased sperm counts and early puberty. “And the thing about endocrine-disrupting chemicals … is that they can work in very, very low concentrations,” she said.

The researchers bought 19 baby pacifiers from stores in the Czech Republic, Slovenia and Hungary, as well as two from the online marketplace Temu, manufactured by Foshan City Saidah Baby Products. To simulate conditions in an infant's mouth, they placed each mannequin in an artificial saliva solution for 30 minutes at 37°C (98.6°F). The resulting extract was analyzed for bisphenol content.

Of the four dummies in which BPA was detected, the highest concentration was found in the Curaprox “grow with love” pacifier. Despite the product being marketed as “BPA-free”, the researchers found a BPA concentration of 19 micrograms per kilogram (µg/kg) – breaching the EU's 10µg limit for BPA migration from baby pacifiers.

The second highest concentration was found in Sophie la Giraffe's “natural rubber” nipple. Laboratory testing revealed a BPA concentration of 3 µg/kg in the product. A concentration of 2 μg/kg was found in a Philips Avent ultra air teat, which is also marketed as “BPA-free,” and one from Temu, manufactured by Foshan City Saidah.

Curaden, which makes the Curaprox line, said the results from the Babies Grow with Love pacifier “came as a surprise.” The company conducted its own tests, which confirmed the findings. “Out of an abundance of caution and in line with our commitment to quality, Curaden immediately decided to proactively remove the pacifiers. [from affected batches] from the market and offer refunds to all affected customers,” the spokesperson said.

Woolley, the creators of Sophie the Giraffe, opposed it. “We haven’t had pacifiers in our catalog for some time,” said a toy maker representative. There leave photos on your website babies using a pacifier, but it is no longer for sale. “In any case, all our products are subject to exclusive [BPA] pre-market testing carried out by an accredited laboratory [SGS]”, the representative said.

“We remind you that the regulatory limit for [BPA] migration was found to be 0.04 mg/kg and the laboratory detection limit was 0.01 mg/kg. The value mentioned in the article (3 μg/kg or 0.003 mg/kg) is well below this detection limit and is therefore negligible,” a Vulli spokesperson said.

Philips said it considers product safety “our highest priority”, ensured by “full compliance with all applicable safety requirements… and compliance with the most stringent standards.”

“We want to assure that our pacifiers are BPA-free throughout the entire manufacturing process, and we regularly conduct random tests and other quality controls to meet regulatory requirements to verify and confirm this,” the spokesperson said. “Following the news of the Philips Avent SCF085/60 pacifier, we have verified our results and conducted further tests with DEKRA, the world's largest independent testing, inspection and certification body. These tests also confirm that all of our pacifiers, including the samples tested, are free of detectable BPA and confirm that they do not contain BPA”.

The city of Foshan Said did not respond to requests for comment.

Philips and Sophie la Girafe products are available in the UK, but Curaprox and Foshan City Saidah products have been withdrawn from the market.

Hana Hoffmannova, editor-in-chief of dTest magazine, said: “Nipples are often one of the first products parents buy, and they don't expect to be exposing their babies to hormone-disrupting chemicals from day one.”

Current EU regulation of BPA in mannequins is controversial. The EN 1400 standard sets the limit for migration of BPA from infant nipples at 10 µg/l. European Toy Safety Directivewhich also applies to pacifiers, sets a limit of 40 µg/l.

EU law has completely banned the use of BPA in baby bottles since 2011, and in 2018 the rules were extended to include food containers and bottles for children under three years of age. Karolina Brabcova, from Czech campaign Arnika, said: “It is illogical that bisphenols are banned in baby bottles but not in nipples, which children use more intensively, and in some cases for many years.

“We're seeing a lack of strong regulation and that's letting consumers down.”