This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Nearly four out of five children's toys purchased in the El Paso-Ciudad Juárez region contain at least one toxic element, according to a new study led by researchers at The University of Texas at El Paso. The findings, just published in the journal Environmental Pollution, represent the first binational screening of hazardous metals in toys sold on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.
"Children are not small adults. Their bodies take in heavy metals more readily than ours do," said Jorge Gardea-Torresdey, Ph.D., professor of chemistry and biochemistry at UTEP and the study's senior author. "And because their organs and detoxification systems are still developing, the same exposure that an adult might tolerate can cause far greater harm." Over an 11-month period, the research team acquired 333 toys from popular retail stores, 109 in El Paso and 224 in Ciudad Juárez, in proportion to each city's population of children under 14.
Using X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), a technique that quickly reveals the elemental makeup of a material's surface, the researchers screened every item for lead, cadmium, arsenic, chromium, nickel, zinc, titanium and others. Overall, 78% of the toys contained at least one element of concern, and about one in eight contained three or more at once. Nickel, among the most common causes of allergic reactions, appeared in more than a third of all samples.
One item was 100% nickel, and four others contained more than 60% nickel. Lead was detected in 3% of the toys, mostly in inexpensive jewelry, where some decorative metal components contained as much as 67% lead. Arsenic and cadmium, both classified as human carcinogens by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, turned up in 18 and 15 items, respectively, all of which were purchased in Ciudad Juárez.
In all, 40 samples, or 12% of the total, contained metal concentrations above limits set by U.S. and Mexican toy safety standards. Even after accounting for differences in product type, toys purchased in Ciudad Juárez were roughly three times more likely to exceed those thresholds than toys purchased in El Paso. Children's jewelry, which made up about 41% of the collection, stood out as the highest-risk category.
The authors caution that XRF measures the total amount of metal in a toy, while safety regulations are based on how much metal can migrate out of a product through contact with saliva or sweat. The results should therefore be read as a screening-level indicator of potential risk rather than as confirmed regulatory violations, the team said. Planned follow-up work includes leaching tests that simulate real-world use and expanded sampling in other border communities.
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