Toxic-free Back-to-school
As summer comes to an end, the hunt for cool back-to-school gear begins! Shockingly, many common school supplies can contain toxic chemicals. For example, lunch boxes, backpacks, and binders can be made of vinyl, a type of plastic that can contain lead and harmful plasticizers known as phthalates.
September 2008
As summer comes to an end, the hunt for cool back-to-school gear begins! Shockingly, many common school supplies can contain toxic chemicals. For example, lunch boxes, backpacks, and binders can be made of vinyl, a type of plastic that can contain lead and harmful plasticizers known as phthalates.
Thankfully, safer products are available for both school and office. Here’s our quick guide to help you find them!
Lunch boxes:
Choose cloth lunch bags and avoid vinyl (plastic) lunch boxes, which may contain lead. You can find cloth lunch bags at ReusableBags.com (several brands) and ProgressiveKid.com, and MimiTheSardine.com. Vinyl-free lunch bags are also available at Whole Foods Market.
Water bottles:
Choose unlined stainless steel or opaque (milky) plastic bottles. Examples are Klean Kanteen’s stainless steel bottles, available from outlets including Patagonia and REI, and opaque sport bottles, available in most stores that sell sporting equipment. Avoid water bottles made of clear plastic of any color unless they are labeled BPA-free. (Clear bottles typically are made of polycarbonate, a type of plastic that leaches the hormone-disrupting chemical bisphenol-A.) We don’t recommend aluminum bottles because manufacturers haven’t disclosed the chemicals used in the inner coatings.
Binders:
Choose cardboard, fabric, or ‘poly’ plastic binders and avoid vinyl binders. ‘Poly’ is short for polypropylene, a safer plastic, and examples include Avery’s Round Ring Poly Binder and Mead’s Five Star Poly Binder, available at drugstores and office supply stores. You can easily avoid vinyl binders by reading product labels and avoiding binders covered with soft plastic. Cardboard binders include REbinders, available online and in Seattle at Goods for the Planet, Madison Market, and the University Bookstore, and TerraCycle Eco-Binders, sold at OfficeMax. Choose ‘poly’ sheet protectors too.
Backpacks:
Choose cloth bags and avoid bags made with vinyl plastic. There are many vinyl-free materials, including cotton, nylon, and polyester. Polyester backpacks available at Target include the High School Musical Backpack, Littlest Petshop Backpack, and Star Wars Vader Invasion Backpack. JanSport is a common brand for polyester backpacks.
Additional Resources:
- www.safestartforkids.org
Safe Start for Kids: more tips for choosing safer apparel, art and craft supplies, food storage containers, and more. - www.watoxics.org/homes-and-gardens/fastfacts/fastfacts-pvc
Fact Sheet about PVC (Vinyl) and Other Plastics - www.betteroffice.com
Better Office Products: a complete line of vinyl-free office supplies
