That attractive ceramic pottery you purchased from a roadsideartist or brought back from foreign lands may be poisoning you andyour family. Lead could be entering the body from food served indinnerware that has not been properly formulated and fired, accordingto FDA Consumer. And there is no way to tell if a piece of potteryis dangerous just by looking at it.
High hevels of lead in the body can harm not only the nervoussystem, kidneys and liver, but also the reproductive, cardiovascular,immunologic and gastrointestinal systems and the processes by whichblood is formed.
Even low levels of lead in babies and children may causelearning and behavioral disorders and affect growth. A recent studystrongly suggests that children exposed to lead before birth maysuffer impaired mental and physical performance during their firsttwo years of life.
The Food and Drug Administration began setting lead limits aftera California family in 1969 suffered acute lead poisoning fromdrinking orange juice stored in a pitcher purchased in Mexico.
Although most large manufacturers in the United States andother countries comply with FDA lead limits, every piece of potterycannot be tested.
Of particular concern to the FDA is dinnerware purchased byconsumers in foreign countries because such products may escape FDAsurveillance.
Among the countries to which FDA is giving higher inspectionpriority are India, Italy, Macao, Mexico, North Korea, Pakistan, thePeople's Republic of China and Thailand.
Japan has an excellent record of complying with U.S.requirements, FDA Consumer said.
Although lead poisoning from exposure through pottery is notcommon, it is best to be safe. It may be expensive, but you can havedinnerware you suspect of having high lead levels tested by aqualified commercial laboratory.
Consult your local health department or the telephone book forlaboratories in your area.
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