- High levels of lead have been found in one of the more popular gadgets this year: fidget spinners. 
 
 In recent lab results, the U.S. PIRG Education Fund found two fidget spinners sold at Target have “extremely high levels of lead.” The advocacy group requested Target and its developer, Bulls i Toys, LLC to recall the products and investigate the how lead seeped into them. 
 
 The two fidget spinners containing the lead are, “Fidget Wild Premium Spinner Brass,” and “Fidget Wild Premium Spinner Metal.” 
 
 According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, lead's toxicity resulted in its ban in household paints and products marketed to children in 1978. Exposure to children is damaging because it can impact development, and any amount of lead in a child’s blood is unsafe. It can affect nearly every body system. 
 
 U.S. PIRG also called on the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to reclassify fidget spinners as toys, rather than its current category of general use products. The organization argues that the two fidget spinners are marketed towards children. On Target’s website, the “Fidget Wild Premium Spinner Bass” is recommended for ages 14 and over, as well as, 6 and over. 
 
 CPSC could hold the products to federal standards for lead if classified as a toy. Children products must not contain more than 100 parts per million (ppm) of total lead in "accessible parts," according to federal requirements. 
 
 In the report, the lab results were tested twice to confirm the results. For the "Fidget Wild Premium Spinner Brass," the center circle tested for 33,000 ppm of lead, and the arm tested for 22,000 ppm of lead. The center circle of the "Fidget Wild Premium Spinner Metal" was tested for 1,300 ppm of lead and the arm tested for 520 ppm of lead. 
 
 While U.S. PIRG notified the CPSC, the agency held firm that the fidget spinners are not toys. 
 
 In the meantime, U.S. PIRG still recommends for adults and children to stop using the fidget spinners. The report did not address whether there have been any injuries after a product purchase. 
 
 View the full report here. ||||| If you're thinking about buying your kids a fidget spinner this holiday season, you may want to think twice. This inexpensive and addictive little toy is already the topic of choking hazard warnings by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. And Thursday morning the US Public Interest Research Group revealed that some of the spinners sold at Target (TGT) contain dangerously high levels of lead. 
 
 The Fidget Wild Premium Spinner Brass tested at 33,000 parts per million for lead -- some 300 times the 100 parts per million allowable for children's toys. The lead level in another model, the Fidget Wild Premium Spinner in Metal, tested at 1,300 parts per million. 
 
 The response from Target and the manufacturer: These particular spinners are recommended for consumers over the age of 14. That means CPSC lead restrictions for children don't apply, according to the companies. Products marketed to those over the age of 12 have no specific lead-level prohibitions. 
 
 "The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has reviewed and explicitly defined fidget spinners as 'general use products.' They are not defined by the CPSC as toys," said Target spokesman Lee Henderson in a prepared statement. 
 
 Fidget Spinner craze sweeping the nation 
 
 Noting that US PIRG had provided Target with its lead testing results, Henderson added that the retailer's product safety team reviewed the consumer advocacy group's data and decided there was no need to pull the products from its shelves or website. 
 
 "The two fidget spinners cited in their letter are clearly marked on the package as 'appropriate for customers ages 14 and older,' and are not marketed to children," Henderson said in an email. "As a result, the fidget spinners identified are not regulated as toys or children's products and are not required to meet children's product standards." 
 
 The manufacturer, Bulls-I-Toy, said in a letter to US PIRG that because the product packaging says this spinner model is for youngsters who are at least 14-years-old, "There are no mandatory CPSC requirements for it." 
 
 Regardless of how the CPSC classifies these spinners, they're marketed as toys for kids, said Kara Cook-Shultz, toxics director at US PIRG. Not only are they sold in the toy aisles, alongside the spinners sold to 6-year-olds, until Thursday, the description of the brass spinner noted that the gadget has an "educational focus" and is appropriate for ages "6 and up," on Target's website. 
 
 After publication of this story, Target updated its website to reflect that the toy was appropriate for ages 14 and up, which matches the age range on the product packaging. 
 
 "All fidget spinners have play value as children's toys regardless of labeling," said Cook-Schultz. "We can't sit idly by while children play with these toxic toys. And, yes, they are toys." 
 
 Lead poisoning is considered most dangerous for young children because their rapidly growing bodies absorb the substance more readily, and they're more likely to put products in their mouths and near their noses, where the lead is most easily ingested. But lead is dangerous for everyone. 
 
 In children, lead can lead to hyperactivity, lack of appetite, behavior problems and learning disabilities. In adults, lead poisoning leads to brain and nervous system ailments, stomach and kidney problems, as well as high blood pressure, weakness, muscle problems and headaches, according to WebMD. 
 
 Some lead exposure victims facing new threat as adults 
 
 Target's spokesman failed to comment about why the retailer would sell a product that could be dangerous for adults. A spokesman for Bulls-I-Toy said the company's products meet CPSC guidelines. When a reporter noted that there are no lead guidelines for adult products, he reiterated: "As a company, we follow the guidelines issued by the CPSC." 
 
 Meanwhile, the CPSC has been warning about other spinner hazards. 
 
 "As the agency investigates some reported incidents associated with the popular product, fidget spinner users or potential buyers should take some precautions," said CPSC Acting Chairwoman Anne Marie Buerkle in an August statement. 
 
 Some of the pieces can break off and create choking hazards, she said. Moreover, light-up spinners often contain lithium coin cell batteries. If swallowed, these batteries can cause severe internal burns. Several reports have also said the devices can catch on fire while charging. 
 
 The CPSC noted that the agency classifies most spinners as "general use" products, rather than children's toys. Thus, they're not required to meet a variety of toy safety standards, including those that limit lead or phthalates content. 
 
 US PIRG's Cook-Schultz said the debate about whether the lead-laced products are a child's toy or an adult "stress-reliever" is beside the point: "These products are not safe," she said. "Let's get them off the shelves." ||||| Fidget spinners are one of the hottest new trends of the year, but ahead of the holiday shopping season, a new report by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, a consumer advocacy organization, says testing found dangerous levels of lead in some. 
 
 The safety group is not aware of any reported cases of kids getting lead poisoning from fidget spinners, but they urge awareness and transparency on the part of the retailers, especially when putting the items in children's toy sections, reports CBS News correspondent Anna Werner. 
 
 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there is no safe level of lead when it comes to children. It can cause serious health problems, including brain damage. It's something a mother from Portland learned the hard way, and now she is trying to help other parents. 
 
 "You don't know what that means the first time you hear that your kid has lead poisoning," Tamara Rubin said. 
 
 CBS News 
 
 Rubin said her sons still suffer debilitating effects from lead exposure in their home 12 years ago, when she says contractors used unsafe methods to remove lead paint. Now, the mother of four helps other parents learn more about products that may contain lead. 
 
 Her "Lead Safe Mama" Facebook page has more than 15,000 followers. She tests consumer products that concerned parents send to her, including hundreds of fidget spinners. She said many of them had concerning levels of lead. 
 
 "It's on the center, it's the part you're interacting with so it's definitely a hazard for children," Rubin said. 
 
 Rubin's blog caught the attention of the U.S. Public Interest Research Group. They tested 12 fidget spinners found in children's toy aisles in Target stores across the country. 
 
 
 
 Two of the products tested with high levels of lead. One contained levels reaching 33,000 parts per million. That's 300 times higher than the legal limit for children's products. 
 
 "They should take these toys off the shelves," said Kara Cook Schultz, U.S. PIRG's toxics program director. 
 
 "The reason that lead is a large concern – especially in children's products – is that when children are exposed to high levels of lead they can experience things like memory loss, learning disabilities," she said. 
 
 Tamara Rubin 
 
 When the group contacted Target and asked them to take the product off the shelves, Target declined, saying the two products are not designed for children. 
 
 According to the packaging, they are marked for ages 14 and up, and Target says, "They are not defined by the Consumer Product Safety Commission as toys" and as a result "are not required to meet children's product standards." 
 
 The toy's manufacturer, Bulls-i-Toy, similarly stated in a letter to the safety group: "The products in question are clearly labeled 'ages 14+'…there are no mandatory CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) requirements for it." 
 
 The CPSC says fidget spinners marketed to children under the age of 12 would be subject to federal testing regulations including lead testing, but those marketed for use over age 12 are considered "general use products," which would not be subject to those same tests. U.S. PIRG is pushing to change the guidelines for these popular gadgets. 
 
 CBS News reached out to Bulls-i-Toy for comment but has not heard back. ||||| They're the flavor of the week, but "fidget spinners" may have spun out of control after a Texas girl swallowed part of hers. 
 
 The toy, which usually features a trio of metal bushings rotating around a central axis, has whipped up a twister of attention this spring, but a Houston-area mom said she was shocked when one of the parts came loose and ended up in her daughter’s throat on Saturday. 
 
 “On the way home from a fun swim meet, I heard Britton make an odd retching noise in the back seat as I was driving. Looking back in the mirror, I saw her face turning red and drool pouring from her mouth,�? Kellie Rose Joniec said on Facebook. 
 
 Her daughter Britton said that she swallowed the metal bit after putting it in her mouth to clean it, and a trip to the hospital showed that the bushing had been lodged in her esophagus. 
 
 Kids love fidget spinner craze, but teachers not so much 
 
 Joniec said she was grateful that surgery removed the bushing, but warned fellow parents about letting their younger children play with the spinners. 
 
 “The bushings pop out easily, so if you have young kids (under 8 yr old) keep in mind that these present a potential choking hazard,�? she said. 
 
 This reporter tried but failed to pop out a bushing from an American-flag themed fidget spinner he bought Wednesday afternoon. 
 
 It is not known exactly how many fidget spinners have been sold in recent weeks, though versions of toy take up the top 14 spots on Amazon’s best-selling toys list. 
 
 Police warn about ‘teddy bear ecstasy’ after 4 teens hospitalized 
 
 Though popular among kids who trade time on their hands for sessions handling the spinners, some of the 500,000 people who shared Joniec’s story on Facebook are likely adults driven nuts by the devices. 
 
 Schools such as PS 29 in Brooklyn have banned fidget spinners in some classrooms and at lunch, with one student’s mom telling the News, “I can see how teachers might hate them.�? 
 
 Some have said that the devices help those with ADHD, though many remain skeptical. ||||| A 10-year-old Houston girl had a brush with death after swallowing a piece of the latest must-have toy — a fidget spinner. 
 
 Britton Joniec underwent emergency surgery on Monday, according to her mom, who described the terrifying ordeal involving the propeller-shaped contraption. 
 
 “On the way home from a fun swim meet, I heard Britton make an odd retching noise in the back seat as I was driving,” Kelly Rose Joniec wrote on Facebook. 
 
 “Looking back in the mirror, I saw her face turning red and drool pouring from her mouth — she could utter noises but looked panicked so I immediately pulled over,” she continued. “She pointed to her throat saying she’d swallowed something, so I attempted Heimlich but there was no resistance.” 
 
 The girl had put one of three bushings from the spinner in her mouth to clean it — but somehow swallowed the metal piece. 
 
 Her mom drove to an urgent care center, where medical workers were unable to determine whether it was lodged in her airway or her esophagus. 
 
 The girl was then rushed to Texas Children’s Hospital in The Woodlands, just north of Houston, where X-rays showed the nickel-size bushing was stuck in her esophagus. 
 
 “The GI doctor was fascinated… he’d only just learned of fidget spinners that morning when he was at the mall with his son, so it was a surprise to be faced with one in a case a few hours later,” Joniec wrote. 
 
 Finally, the doctor used an endoscope to remove the object. 
 
 “Fortunately, we had a positive outcome, but it was pretty scary there for a while,” the mom said. 
 
 Joniec had a word of caution for parents about the toy, which originally was designed as a therapeutic tool for kids with ADHD and autism. 
 
 “Fidget spinners are the current craze so they are widely distributed. Kids of all ages may be getting them, but not all spinners come with age-appropriate warnings,” she said. 
 
 She pointed out that the bushings pop out easily and can pose a potential choking hazard for young children. 
 
 The twirling toys have become so popular lately that they’ve been banned in some schools.
– A maker of one of the hottest products of the year has just found itself in a bucket of hot water. According to a consumer advocacy group, two fidget spinners supplied to Target by Iowa-based Bulls-i-Toy contain lead at up to 330 times the federal legal limit for toys. Inspired by a 15,000-strong Facebook group run by a woman who tests consumer products for lead, the US Public Interest Research Group tested 12 fidget spinners sold by Target and found two with unsafe lead levels, reports CBS News. Fidget Wild Premium Spinner Brass was found to contain 33,000 parts per million at its center, while Fidget Wild Premium Spinner Metal contained 1,300 parts per million, reports the Washington Post. Federal laws limit lead in "children's products" to 100 parts per million. The group is now asking Target to remove the products and recall those already sold. But Target isn't complying, arguing the Consumer Product Safety Commission classifies fidget spinners as "general use products" marketed to users 14 and up, making them exempt from regulations on toys. Bulls-i-Toy seconds that, noting the products are "clearly labeled" for ages 14 and up. But FOX 13 notes the fidget spinners sold in Target toy aisles had actually been listed on its website at one point with a manufacturer's recommendation for users "6 years and up." Given that lead exposure can cause learning disabilities in children, among many other issues, US PIRG's toxics director maintains "these products are not safe," per CBS. (They're also a choking hazard.)