I saw some folks online talking about whether those fancy teacups we love so much might have lead in them. You know, the vintage ones, or even some of the newer pretty ones. Got me thinking, so I decided to do a little digging myself and see what’s up.
First, I grabbed a bunch of teacups. Some were old ones I’d picked up from thrift stores, and a few were newer ones that just looked nice. My goal? Figure out if these things are safe to actually drink from.
Next, I ordered a lead testing kit online. It came with these little swabs and some instructions. Pretty straightforward, looked like. Now I start to test these cups.
Started with an old, chipped teacup. The instructions said to rub the swab on the inside, where the tea would touch. Did that, followed the steps to see the results, and bam! The swab changed color, which, according to the kit, meant there was likely lead present. Bummer.
- Tried it on a few more old ones. Same story.
- Tested the newer cups, just to be sure. Thankfully, those came back clean. No color change on the swabs.
Now I understand, from what I read online, that most, if not all, these old cups might have lead either in the base or in that shiny glaze. And it seems like the ones fired at low temperatures, those earthenware ones, are the most likely culprits.
My Takeaway
I realized those beautiful old cups might be better off as decoration than for actual tea time. Sad, I know, but better safe than sorry. I am not risking lead poisoning for a cup of tea. Now, If you’re like me and love a good thrift store find, maybe stick to using those pretty cups for display, and keep some newer, lead-free ones for your actual tea drinking.
Oh, and those disposable paper cups? Turns out they’re not great either. Read a study that said drinking tea from them means you could be swallowing a bunch of tiny plastic particles. Seriously, it’s like you can’t win! From now on, I’m sticking to my trusty, plain, definitely lead-free mugs.
