The Art and Creative Materials Institute, a trade association paid to certify such materials as non-toxic, insisted the tests must be wrong. The toxicologist evaluates the products and if there was asbestos in crayons, he'd be right on top of that. The labs, which routinely do work for the EPA, stand by their results. Asbestos fibers cause cancer, but to do so, they must enter the body. Inhalation, the breathing of fibers into the lungs, is the most common and heavily researched pathway.
Crayons are the unchallenged favorite of children.
Researchers at Crayola, which makes 12 million crayons a day, have determined that by age 10, the average child has worn down 723 Crayons. Today's vivid colors, far brighter and varied then the traditional eight that baby boomers grew up with, can hold the attention of a child for hours. And they don't just use them to make pretty pictures. Children eat crayons, as many parents know. The old shoe box, or whatever a child uses to keep their old crayons, has a layer of bits of wax and crayon shavings in the bottom.