Do you have friends or co-workers who use women’s handbags, buy children’s toys, car seats, or even have a pet or two? Well, yeah, that covers just about everyone we know! None of us want these products to expose us to toxic chemicals that are associated with health problems, but it turns out some of these commonly used products do just that. The big question we all have is: Which of these products are a problem?

Now you can help your friends and family members by sharing a new resource that has just been released this week: Healthy Stuff tested 5,000 products for unhealthy chemicals, and created a handy searchable database so consumers can access the results. Check it out!

None of us want to expose our children to hazardous chemicals: that’s part of the reason why we worked so hard to get lead out of kids toys. Imagine my surprise when I learned that 75% of the handbags Healthy Stuff tested contained lead. Both of my kids enjoy playing dress up, and my old purses are one of their favorite accessories. Car seats, booster seats, even the insides of mini-vans can contain alarming amounts of toxic chemicals. Even your family pet is at risk: one quarter of all pet products tested had detectable levels of lead.

As parents, grandparents, and allies, we can all work together and use our power as consumers to demand healthier products and improved safety standards. The positive feedback from the PVC-Free school supplies guide we sent around last month was overwhelming. It turns out (surprise, surprise!) people want to know if the products they buy are exposing them to toxic chemicals that are associated with health issues including fertility problems and miscarriage, learning and developmental disabilities, and a wide range of cancers and other diseases.

Clearly with such a long list of products that contain toxic chemicals, the nation’s chemicals policy needs to be reformed so that known-dangerous chemicals will not be found in the products we buy everyday for our families. While we’re distributing information about toxic chemicals in commonly used products, we’re also working to reform the nation’s chemical policies so we don’t put our children at risk. Learn more at www.SaferChemicals.org .

Want to get involved? If you haven’t already, don’t forget to send a letter to Congress urging comprehensive chemical policy reform, because parents have enough to worry about, without adding toxic chemicals to the list.

Check out our website for more information about the online database, and find out how you can get database results by sending a text message while shopping in English or Spanish. You can also spread the word other parents, grandparents, and pet lovers with this cool widget for your blog downloadable here.