Seven Toys Cited For High Lead Levels

(CBS)  With the holiday shopping season just around the corner, one consumer group is issuing a word of caution for parents. It says some children's products still contain unsafe levels of lead, and the group wants them off store shelves.

The Center for Environmental Health tested about 250 children's products and found seven of them had high levels of lead.

The center's executive director, Michael Green, told CBS News, "No company wants to be the one caught with lead in their stuff."

But the Center says its independent testing caught the following products:

Dora the Explorer Activity Tote
MSY Faded Glory Rebecca shoes
Paula Fuschia Open-Toed shoes
Reversible Croco belt
Barbie bike flair accessory kit
Kids poncho
Disney Fairies Silvermist's Water Lily necklace

The Walt Disney Company disputes the results, saying, "Tests showed the necklace to be in compliance with all applicable state and federal consumer safety regulations."

Mattel says it licensed the Barbie product and the licensee says, "It was an older product that passed safety tests in 2007."

Two years ago, lead-tainted toys led to a recall of more than two million toys and brought about stricter standards. And in spite of these new test results, experts say there are far fewer dangerous toys on the shelves.

"It is definitely a safer Christmas than it was two years ago," Green observes.