Amy Ziff Jewelry Blog Post graphic Past AMY ZIFF

My Grandmother Helen always taught u.s.a. to salvage up to purchase good jewelry. While I have a few family heirlooms, I'1000 not certain I'thou living up to my grandmother's mandate. My jewelry box contains antiques from fairs and a funky collection of colorful pieces that remind me of certain times in my life. At that place are also trinkets and mementos I simply can't part with. A few items are "skillful" investments, I suppose. Only what has the about value is difficult to say. Who knows what most of them are actually worth or what they are actually made of?

TOXIC TREASURE?

My kids like digging for "treasure" in my jewelry box. They'll pull out a strand of beads or a string of pearls (are those even real?) and drapery them around their necks. They'll put the smooth stone from an agate brooch confronting their cheeks. They'll try on bracelets and rings. And no affair how many times I say, "Don't put that in your mouth," inevitably I look over and find someone sucking on a necklace or property the dorsum cease of a pivot in their mouth before putting it on.

Well-nigh adults know non to put jewelry in their mouths, but I can't say the same for kids.

Information technology'due south hard for me to be at-home in these moments because I know what dangers lurk in seemingly innocent clothes-up. Jewelry is yet another surface area where children can be exposed to chemicals of damage.

"Get that out of your mouth!" I shout, running over to confiscate said item.

Jewelry can comprise heavy metals. At the top of the listing is public enemy number one: lead Рa strong neurotoxin with a quantifiable linkage to reduced IQ. This metal is associated with developmental problems, and learning, language, and behavioral problems. Whether it's within an amalgam in the metal itself, only in some parts of a piece of jewelry, or mixed inside colored pigment or finishes, lead is commonly found in wearable jewelry. And it's not merely in the inexpensive stuff. Antique jewelry, particularly cloisonn̩ pieces, can also comprise lead. Doctors concur that there is simply no safe level of pb and even so, lead can be found on children'south jewelry without a warning.

In contempo years, another heavy metal has been found in costume jewelry: cadmium. This one is a carcinogen. Last year a study testing 159 pieces of jewelry establish sixteen percent tested positive for cadmium. Cadmium tin can also be a skin irritant, and is associated with reproductive and developmental toxicity.

Nickel and chromium are two other heavy metals that can be found in jewelry, peculiarly cheap jewelry. These 2 culprits are both skin irritants. Nickel is the nearly common allergen in both children and adults.

MYSTERY MATERIALS

Here's the matter, nosotros all probably spent fourth dimension picking through our mothers' or grandmothers' jewelry collections. I know I did. Doing the work I do, I know that toxins lurk, fifty-fifty in the prettiest things.

And with immature kids, I've been increasingly aware of all the trinkets and costume jewelry that are marketed to kids. In my family unit, we ever have a battle walking past Claire's at the mall considering I don't want them to buy disposable jewelry that volition end upward in a landfill, sooner rather than later, and is probable to exist toxic. I know, it's not e'er fun to say no.

Worse than the battle at the mall is that my kids have accumulated inexpensive gifts from their friends – bracelets, earrings, and pins that are decorated with paint, sparkles, gemstones and more. Across being made relatively inexpensively, I have no idea what they could be made of. And with over 180 million recalls on jewelry in the US in recent years, those mystery materials are crusade for alarm!

Jewelry kits tin also hide troublesome substances. They don't typically list what the jewelry is made of, so it's impossible to know what might be used. A remember of a common jewelry-making kit (my family has one that is frighteningly similar) sold at Target and other major chain retailers cited jewelry components that independent high amounts of toxic lead.

Jewelry, including kits and costume jewelry, is non labeled, so parents need to be aware of the risks. In addition to containing heavy metals, cheap, fast fashion items can too include barium, brominated flame retardants, and PVC. Each of these is associated with diverse health impacts.

It comes down to the fact that jewelry often uses cheap materials that shouldn't be worn or handled past kids (or really past adults, either). While some jewelry may be labeled "Not for Children," indicating that it probably contains a toxic substance, in one case you remove the tag you might non remember. And if your kids are like mine, they'll touch any they want, unaware of any unseen hazards.

MAKING SAFER CHOICES

Now that I've shared all of this data, don't panic. Just do your best to remain alert to this potential for harm now that you know. You accept the power. Every small alter you brand towards healthier products is important and meaningful.

Jewelry doesn't have to exist harmful to humans, contribute to the plastic pollution problem, or contaminate the planet. Good quality jewelry purchases are long-lasting and memorable. Look for 100 percentage gold and sterling silver, or surgical implant grade stainless steel.

While choosing silverish and gold is a great solution to avoiding toxic substances, remember that information technology tin can introduce a gear up of ecology and human rights issues. Choosing upcycled and vintage golden and silvery is best for the environs, simply are just safe when they are pure metals. They also avert contributing to any problems regarding the rubber and health of workers involved in the supply chain.

For younger children who are not yet ready for special jewelry, or for more affordable options, consider making your own rope or thread bracelets, macramé and fabric jewelry, or other decorative items without any metals. Make certain to skip the plastic.

If you exercise brand crafts with the kids, jewelry or otherwise, wash your hands as soon as you are done. And brand certain none of the pieces are left where young children might explore them with their mouths.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The bottom line? If yous purchase jewelry, find out what it'south fabricated of. What every single part is made of.

For a recent birthday, I had to do merely this. I decided I wanted to get my daughters a "real" piece of jewelry. Something nice but not ridiculously expensive. Something my grandmother would've approved of. All the same the reality is they are nevertheless at an age where things become lost or tossed aside and tin become missing for weeks on end. Across that, I needed to know what the jewelry was made of to ensure it wasn't toxic.

I gear up out to find safe jewelry that my kids would love and I could too. It had to be nontoxic, hypo-allergenic, and not contribute to plastic pollution.

I consulted my girlfriend, an amazing jewelry maker, to see if maybe she had something for my girls. She had a necklace she made for adults that she adjusted for my girls in sterling silver. With a gemstone representing my birthstone and theirs, information technology was perfect. My daughters article of clothing their special necklaces everyday. If it goes in a oral cavity, it's ok! There's aught toxic in the silver or the gemstones!

Success for the nontoxic mom! Success for the kids.

Desire more tips on safer jewelry? Read our Product Profile on Jewelry containing citations, and download our new educational fact sheet: What's in Jewelry: Toxic Substances in Kids' and Adult's Jewelry.

My jeweler girlfriend is Meredith Kahn. At present she has a whole children's precious stone line! She uses vermeil, which is aureate plating over sterling silver. This makes the line safer and more affordable.

SPECIAL MEMORIAL Mean solar day WEEKEND SHOPPING Effect!

MADE Safety and Meredith Kahn are thrilled to requite you the opportunity to shop safer jewelry while giving back! This weekend, when you shop online to purchase jewelry by Meredith Kahn, Meredith has kindly offered a 10% discount for shoppers and a x% donation to MADE Safe! Shop the entire site here: https://meredithkahn.com/ or Meredith'south kids' products hither: https://www.lepetitgem.com/. Call up to utilize the code MADESAFE when you make your buy  (NOTE: Baan Bangles are non included in this sale).

Offer valid  Friday May 24th – Monday May 27th.

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Amy Ziff is the Founder and Executive Director of Made SAFE®, a program of Nontoxic Certified, a nonprofit 501(c)(iii). MADE Safe is America's commencement comprehensive human wellness-focused certification for nontoxic products across shop aisles, from baby to personal care to household and across.