Sometimes nothing in the world can be so refreshing as taking a long drink straight from the hose after mowing the grass or working in the garden. And who doesn’t remember splashing through the spray from the sprinkler?

But those simple pleasures might not be so simple or safe, thanks to the lead and other toxic chemicals that are being used in hoses and other garden products, chemicals that can find their way into the water you drink and the soil in your garden.  In a recent study by HealthyStuff.org, a project of the Ecology Center, we found high amounts of lead, phthalates and the toxic chemical BPA in the water held in new hoses after sitting outside in the sun for just a few days.

In our study, we screened 179 common garden products, including garden hoses, gloves, kneeling pads and garden tools.  We were looking for lead, cadmium, bromine (associated with brominated flame retardants); chlorine (indicating the presence of polyvinyl chloride, or PVC); phthalates and bisphenol A (BPA). Such chemicals have been linked to birth defects, impaired learning, liver toxicity, premature births and early puberty in laboratory animals, among other serious health problems.

More than two-thirds of products tested contained chemicals of “high concern,” according to government standards. Thirty percent contained more lead than is allowed in children’s products. Water sampled from one hose contained 18 times more lead than is allowed by the federal drinking water standard. And all of the garden hoses sampled for phthalates contained four plasticizers which are currently banned in children’s products. Complete results can be found at HealthyStuff.org. Read some of the news coverage online from LA Times and NY Times.

So even if you are an organic gardener, doing everything you can to avoid pesticides and fertilizers, you still may be introducing hazardous substances into your soil by using these products.

The good news is that healthier choices are out there. As a consumer, there are lots of things you can do.

• Read the labels: Buy hoses that are labeled “drinking water safe” and “lead-free.”
• Always let your hose run for a few seconds before using, since the water that’s been sitting in the hose will have the highest levels of chemicals.
• Store your hose in the shade. The heat from the sun can increase the leaching of chemicals from the PVC into the water.
• Unless you know for sure that your hose is drinking water safe, don’t drink from it. Even low levels of lead may cause health problems.

But there’s a bigger issue here. The fact that gardening products, including water hoses, are completely unregulated and often fail to meet drinking water standards that apply to other products, that’s only a symptom of a much bigger problem. The real problem is the complete failure of our federal chemicals regulatory system.

But there’s a chance we can get that fixed. Right now, a bill under consideration by the Senate would provide for a long-overdue overhaul of the regulations regarding toxic chemicals. People need to let their senators know that fixing the toxic chemicals law is important to American families.

Please sign the petition to Congress asking them to support the Safe Chemicals Act!

If we ever want our kids to really enjoy a splash through the sprinkler, or gulp down a drink straight from the hose, we need to reform our laws to ensure products are safe before they arrive on store shelves.