FDA Advice on Leaded Crystalware

Recent preliminary studies conducted by researchers at Columbia University and at the FDA have suggested that alcoholic and some other beverages stored for prolonged periods of time in crystal ware decanters may leach lead, a highly toxic substance, from the crystal.  The FDA and the crystal ware industry are conducting additional studies on the release of lead by leaded crystal glass.  The following may be used to answer questions.

In August 1990, FDA reported results of 60 samples of crystal ware from 17 different countries.  Most of the samples were crystal glasses of various sizes and shapes that were analyzed for leachable lead.  The tests showed that the amount of lead released over one 24-hour period ranged from non-detectable levels to 7.2 parts per million (ppm).  Similar results were noted in four crystal decanters in this test group.

For testing purposes, FDA scientists applied a 4% acetic acid solution (similar to household vinegar) to a test sample and measured the amount of lead released over a 24-hour period. 

The recent Columbia study was conducted by Dr. Joseph Graziano and Dr. Conrad Blum.  Published on January 19, 1991 in the Lancet, a British medical journal, the study demonstrated that the lead concentrations increased substantially the longer that wines and other alcoholic beverages were stored in lead crystal decanters. 

In one experiment, Graziano and Blum found that port wine, which was found to have a normal lead level of .089 ppm, showed increasing amounts of lead, reaching 3.5 ppm after four months storage in the decanters.

In another experiment reported in a January 8, 1991 letter to the Journal of Pediatrics, Graziano and Blum filled two crystal baby bottles and two regular glass baby bottles with apple juice (an acidic food).  They found that the lead levels in the juice rose from 0.001 ppm to 0.166 ppm after four hours in the two crystal bottles.  No increase in lead content was detected in the apple juice in the regular bottles.  A warm infant formula produced similar results.  The researcher surmised that heating contributed to the immediate rise in the lead level of the formula.  Although baby bottles made of leaded crystal are not common, families that own them are cautioned not to use them. 

Lead has long been known to be a health hazard.  The effort of the government and other scientists has been to minimize human exposure whenever and wherever possible, particularly in children and pregnant women.  Infants and children are susceptible to adverse effects from lower levels of lead than are adults.  High levels of lead in the blood can harm the process by which blood is formed, the nervous system, kidneys, and liver, as well as the reproductive, cardiovascular, immune, and gastrointestinal systems. 

Pending completion of more comprehensive studies, consumers may want to avoid storing foods or beverages in crystal glassware for extended periods of time.  This advice is especially relevant for pregnant women, due to the sensitivity of the fetus to lead.  Care should also be taken to not feed infants and children from leaded crystal baby bottles or glassware.


Art Hazard News, Volume 14, No. 4, 1991

This article was originally printed for Art Hazard News, © copyright Center for Safety in the Arts 1991. It appears on CAR courtesy of the Health in the Arts Program, University of Illinois at Chicago, who have curated a collection of these articles from their archive which are still relevant to artists today.