Last night, my 9-year-old daughter unboxed a popular “Mystery Dumpling” toy in our home — the viral mystery dumpling squishy toy that many kids are seeing on YouTube and TikTok — and almost immediately the room filled with a very strong organic solvent-like odor.
We collected a headspace VOC sample and analyzed it using thermal desorption GC-MS. The results were concerning.
The Dumpling contains significant concentrations of cyclohexane, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes. We also detected a trace level of benzene.
These are not chemicals we want to see off-gassing from a toy designed to be handled by children. The exposure scenario is different from many household products because a child may hold the toy, squeeze it, keep it close to the face, and play with it for extended periods. That creates potential for inhalation exposure to emitted VOCs and skin contact with the toy material.
This does not mean every toy in this product line has the same VOC profile. Our result applies to the specific toy we purchased and tested. But it does raise an important question: why is a children’s toy emitting this mixture of organic chemicals?
The finding also fits into a broader indoor air issue. We are increasingly detecting elevated VOCs in homes and occupied spaces using sensitive VOC sampling methods. Some VOCs come from obvious sources, such as solvents, paints, adhesives, fragranced products, building materials and synthetic fabrics. Others may be less obvious. And as homes become tighter and less ventilated for energy efficiency, VOCs released indoors may have less opportunity to dilute or escape.
If you are wondering what happened to the Dumpling, we've put in into a vacuum chamber in the hopes that the VOCs will evaporate. My daughter keeps checking on it - we're hoping for the best.