Are BPA-free alternatives in plastic toys always safer?
Not always. A 2026 exposure model found that young children can be exposed to BPA alternatives from toys, and some alternatives can create higher estimated daily exposure than BPA.
What's actually in it
BPA is a bisphenol used in some plastics. Some products now use related chemicals instead, such as BPS, BPF, or other bisphenol alternatives.
BPA-free does not always mean bisphenol-free. Children touch toys, mouth toys, and ingest dust from play areas, so exposure can happen in more than one way.
What the research says
A 2026 study in Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology used USEtox modeling to estimate young children’s exposure to BPA and BPA alternatives in toys.
The model found that exposure depended on toy material, chemical properties, mouthing, skin contact, and dust ingestion. For combined toy exposure in children ages 3 to 6, bisphenol F had the highest estimated daily exposure among the modeled chemicals.
This study modeled exposure. It did not prove that every BPA-free toy is unsafe. It does show that swapping BPA for a related bisphenol is not automatically safer.
What to do
For babies and toddlers, choose fewer plastic toys when you can. Pick untreated wood, natural rubber, or soft items made from organic cotton baby swaps.
The research at a glance
| Study | Journal | Year |
|---|---|---|
| USEtox modeling of children's exposures to Bisphenol A (BPA) and alternatives in toys. | J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol | 2026 |