Rising from Poison: BAN Toxics Champions Community Action During National Poison Prevention Week 2025

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San Jose del Monte, Bulacan – A powerful wave of community action surged through the city as National Poison Prevention Week 2025 unfolded with a resounding call to safeguard Filipino families—especially children—from the growing threats of toxic chemical exposure. At the heart of this movement is BAN Toxics, a leading environmental justice organization determined to ignite change from the grassroots up.

With the stirring theme “Lasong Umahon sa Pabago-Bagong Panahon: Iba’t Ibang Sektor Magsitugon”, this year’s observance didn’t just mark a date on the calendar—it ignited a national consciousness. The weeklong campaign drew strength from Presidential Proclamation No. 1777, issued in 2009 by then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, declaring the fourth week of June as National Poison Prevention Week to stem the tide of poisoning incidents across the country.

But this was no mere commemoration. It was a call to arms, a rallying cry that BAN Toxics took straight to the people.

On June 26, 2025, BAN Toxics convened a Knowledge-Sharing Seminar on Poison Prevention at Home and in Schools at Benito Nieto Elementary School in Barangay Muzon. Over 80 participants—students, teachers, and parents—gathered for a crash course in survival in an increasingly toxic world, as part of the group’s Toxics-Free and Waste-Free Schools Program (TFSP).

“Preventing poisoning begins with awareness at the grassroots level,” declared Thony Dizon, the organization’s steadfast Advocacy and Campaign Officer. “Children are our most vulnerable citizens. They are exposed daily to toys, school supplies, and household products that could quietly endanger their health.”

The seminar painted a chilling picture. Dr. Annabelle Sinlao, Vice Chair of the Philippine Medical Association’s Committee on Environmental Health and Ecology, laid bare the harsh realities of poison risks in everyday life—especially in environments where children are supposed to be safe: homes and schools. Her presentation stressed the power of awareness, early recognition of symptoms, and community vigilance in creating safer environments.

Adding fuel to the urgency, BAN Toxics unveiled disturbing findings from their most recent studies:

A 2024 study revealed that 62.64% of 257 plastic toys tested contained alarming levels of toxic heavy metals, including lead, arsenic, cadmium, and mercury.

In a June 2025 market sampling, a children’s backpack displayed a staggering 18,900 parts per million (ppm) of lead, while a red water container tested at 12,000 ppm—both grotesquely exceeding the safety threshold.

Additional school items like crayons, pencils, erasers, sharpeners, and plastic envelopes tested positive for arsenic, barium, cadmium, and chromium, all of which pose serious threats to children’s cognitive development, organ function, and overall health.

For BAN Toxics, these findings are not just data—they are a call to action. The group is urgently pressing for stricter implementation of Republic Act No. 10620 (Toy and Game Safety Labeling Act of 2013), and urging the 20th Congress to finally pass the Safe and Non-Hazardous Children’s Products Act—a long-overdue bill that languished during the Duterte administration despite unanimous approval by the 18th Congress in 2017.

“We need all sectors—parents, educators, policymakers, and industry leaders—to unite in this fight,” Dizon said. “Every child has a fundamental right to a clean, safe, and toxics-free environment. It is a responsibility we all share.”

As the country observes National Poison Prevention Week, the message is louder than ever: Toxic chemicals have no place in the hands of children, and it’s time the nation rises together to ensure a safer, healthier future.

With BAN Toxics leading the charge, the battle for environmental safety is no longer a niche advocacy—it’s a national mission that begins in every barangay, every classroom, every home.

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