The recent recall of more than 345,000 children’s drinking cups due to excessive lead in the containers is an excellent time to remember why lead exposure is so dangerous to children. There’s a reason the U.S. government strictly regulates the use of lead in household products such as paint and children’s toys.
How lead can harm Birmingham’s children
That is because lead is harmful to children and can cause lifelong damage. As the CDC explains, a child’s ingestion of lead has been linked to:
- Brain and nervous system damage
- Delays in growth and development
- Learning disabilities and behavioral problems
- Hearing and speech difficulties
Parents naturally want to minimize their children’s exposure to lead at home and the rest of the world. Which is why Soojimus recently announced it was voluntarily recalling its Cupkin Double-Walled Stainless Steel Children’s Cups. The cups include straws and come in eight- and 12-ounce sizes. They were sold on Amazon and Soojimus’ Cupkin website starting in 2018 through earlier this year when it came to light that the cups contain lead levels in excess of the federal limit. No injuries to children have been reported so far.
Hopefully, no child has been sickened by these lead-lined cups. The harm that lead exposure causes can affect a child the rest of their lives. Defective products that harm children can cause particular anguish because a young person can spend decades living with a disability as a result. The costs can run into the millions of dollars. No family should be forced to pay for a corporation’s negligent disregard for their customers’ safety.
