Latex Balloons- a very safe product
|
Latex Balloons- a very safe product
|
|
|
Latex balloons- a very safe product Latex balloons were first manufactured in 1847, in the UK.
The product, the market and the technology have naturally made giant strides
since then. However within Europe, balloon manufacturing and distribution has
remained within the hands of family businesses, some going back over seven
decades. When making and producing a product, that has remained both a perennial
favourite amongst both children and adults over the centuries,
safety has always been paramount. To this end, 2 years ago the European
Balloon Council was set up solely to pursue the highest standards of health,
safety and environmental issues with the European balloon market. In recent years a number of European governments and
environmental bodies have been investigating the levels of Nitrosamines and
Nitrosatable compounds in foods and everyday consumer products. Nitrosamines
form a group of substances that have been found by researchers to be potential
carcinogens. They exist in
varying quantities in many of our foodstuffs such as bacon, grilled burgers,
smoked fish and meats, beers, passive smoking and in many cases the environment.
Although the levels in many foodstuffs have decreased over the last 20 years
they still persist. Nitrosamines do not potentially cause any harm until they
are ingested in sufficient quantities to cause harm and for Nitrosatable
compounds they will only be converted to potentially harmful Nitrosamines when
they reach the stomach. Within the EU,
legislation only exists for infant’s teats and soothers.
In Germany, approximately 10 years ago guidelines were given for the
levels of Nitrosamines / Nitrosatables in toy balloons. These guidelines were
based largely on the legislation for teats and soothers and the limits set for
toy balloons were effectively the same as those for teats and soothers. Despite, the lack of legislation, the European balloon
industry, has responsibly and voluntarily moved towards the German guidelines on
Nitrosamines for teats and soothers. It is important that this is viewed in the context of
comparative exposures. Both are dipped latex products. But
there the similarities end. Teats and soothers have prolonged oral
contact with infants. EU legislation states that balloons are unsuitable for
children under three years of age and require supervision for children under the
age of eight. Hence the industry is moving towards a norm for teats and soothers
that are designed to have prolonged oral exposure with infants, whereas balloons
carry warning labels that advise against exposure to children under the age of
three. Consequently infant’s use of teats or soothers can lead to potential
ingestion, hence the need for strict controls on the levels of Nitrosamines /Nitrosatable.
Whereas with a balloon there should be no ingestion whatsoever. Even if there was some accidental oral contact, by a small
child trying to inflate a balloon the consequence would be inconsequential. The
teats and soothers test takes into account the total surface area of the
product. Inflation of a balloon involves contact with a tiny percentage of the
total surface area of the balloon for a very limited period of time. As a consequence the European balloon industry is moving
towards limits for a baby product
whose additional exposure can be measured
in multiples of thousands against that of a child with a latex balloon. All this assumes there is indeed some exposure. For the
sake of being repetitive there should be no exposure. All balloon packaging
clearly states that the product is unsuitable for children under 3 and
supervised for those under 8. Manufacturers
now state on their packaging that balloons should be inflated by a balloon pump,
indicating that there would no oral exposure by any age group. Furthermore,
packaging also states that pieces that remain from a broken balloon should be
discarded immediately. Very recently a study made by an independent organisation on behalf of the Dutch health authorities found that there was no health risk whatsoever from toy balloons. This study was done assuming the worst case scenario and that there is oral contact by an underage child Indeed a child is exposed to a higher level of
nitrosamines by some foodstuffs and passive smoking, plus those present in our
domestic environment. Not only do
balloons not present a nitrosamine health risk. They have major environmental
pluses. Latex is a natural product
coming from rubber trees that are grown in certain areas of the tropics. These
are not trees that are cut down to produce the latex. The latex is obtained by a
tapping process. Natural rubber latex cultivation contributes significantly to
the removal of greenhouse gases produced by industrialised nations. As a
consequence the consumption of latex product leads to planting and maintenance
of the rubber tree, making its contribution to preventing deforestation. As a
finished product a latex balloon is completely biodegradable. Latex balloons probably have an unparalleled safety record.
For a product that probably everyone in the developed world has experienced at
some time, and has been around for over 150 years, it is a record that the
industry is justifiably proud. By nature of the type of businesses involved it
is of no benefit whatsoever to produce a product that could be in any reasonable
way considered harmful to its consumers. In Conclusion, toy balloons are not a health risk to children. They are clearly labelled warning against their inflation or played with by children under 3 years of age, and only to be used by children under 8 years old under supervision. Balloon manufacturers are also introducing new labelling recommending that toy balloons are only to be inflated using a balloon pump. Guidance limits originally introduced for toy balloons that were developed from those developed for Teats and Soothers clearly do not fully take into account the very different way in which these products are used or the degree of exposure to a child. |
|
Copyright © 2003 European Balloon Council
|