Since there has been so much alarm in the press lately about lead, I have had some women call me about the lead used in the weights in the vest. I was assured by the manufacturer of the weights long ago that there was no chance of toxicity because you don’t touch the actual lead at all, only the bags.
The reason why I used the lead shot is because it is a soft weight, meaning that it moves on impact. It is therefore much less dangerous than large lumps of metal that could cause bone problems in a fall. Unfortunately there is nothing that I can find to substitute that is as heavy as lead. Some vests from China use sand but the mass of sand for the same weight is so much larger that it would not work for women’s vests.
I know that we are exposed to a lot of lead in our daily lives in this country. It is in lipstick, in the lining of food cans, in our water supplies and in old paints and dirt contaminated with the old lead in gasoline. I also worked with lead for many years on my stained glass projects yet I never have tested high on lead in my body.
Anyway, to answer the concern and make absolutely sure the vests were safe and non-toxic, I am now packaging each weight in a heavy-duty ziploc bag, taped shut. This should alleviate all worries about the weights. If anyone who already has a vest reading this would like a set of the bags to put their weights in, please email me with your address and I will send them out to you.
Good health,
Pam