Silver jewelry cleaners can harm people, environment

MANILA, Philippines - If your silver class ring, bangles or necklace become tarnished, you can clean it using baking soda and hot water.

Others, particular jewelry vendors, would usually resort to silver jewelry cleaners that come in the form of either paste or liquid and are marketed as silver dip, silver polish or silver cleaner.

For one, it is an agent that is fast and effective against dirt and stains that can bring the luster back to your precious body ornaments or utensils. Besides, this cleansing agent is easily bought over the counter for a measly sum of P40 to P80 per bottle.

But take heed, silver jewelry cleaners contain a host of chemicals harmful to man and the environment such as ammonia, isopropanol, nitric acid and sulfuric acid.

Worse, this cleansing agent is laced with the deadly cyanide and contains thiourea, which is a probable human carcinogen that may cause irreversible effects, infertility, allergic skin reaction, liver damage and may be fatal if swallowed, according to the Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMD) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

DENR-EMD Director Julian Amador has confirmed that tested samples of silver jewelry cleaners are laced with “high contents of cyanide, which is fatal to humans when ingested.”

In fact, the DENR-EMB has banned its sale in July last year pursuant to the DENR Administrative Order 1997-39 or the “Chemical Control Order for Cyanide and Cyanide Compounds.”

The ban followed a January to April 2009 study of the University of the Philippines-National Poison Management and Control Center (UP-NPMCC) that recorded 99 cases of silver jewelry cleaner poisoning, including 11 accidental and 88 non-accidental cases with six fatalities, all under 19 years of age.

The state university’s statistics also indicated that silver jewelry cleaners rank fourth in the top 10 commonly ingested poisons in the country, noting that cases of accidental or suicidal intake of this lethal silver cleaner continue to pile up to this day.

The EcoWaste Coalition, an environmental group working for public health and chemical safety, cited the report from the homicide section of the Manila Police District in disclosing that six suicides were registered in Manila during the last quarter of the year due to the deliberate intake of the cyanide-laced silver cleaner.

A glaring example of accidental poisoning and senseless death happened when a boy drank the solution mistaking it for mineral water after his uncle carelessly deposited the contents into a mineral water bottle and carelessly left the chemical on the dinner table.

Manny Calonzo, EcoWaste Coalition president, also noted that these silver cleaners are sold without proper labeling.

At the same time, Calonzo has advised silver jewelry owners to use instead warm water, mild soap and a soft bristle toothbrush or a non-abrasive soft lint-free cloth in preventing and removing the build up of dirt and blemish on those precious jewelries instead of resorting to the highly toxic material.

He said that with proper care, storing and maintenance, those silver pieces can always shine when stored in a small zippered plastic bag by itself or away from other metals to prevent from being rubbed by other jewelry and to prevent quick oxidation brought about by moisture in the air.

“Also, avoid storing the silver pieces in wood, pulp, envelopes and card boxes,” he added.