When Rick Smith and Bruce Lourie wrote their provocative Slow Death By Rubber Ducky: The Secret Danger of Everyday Things (Counterpoint, 2010), they probably didn’t think about the backlash that would be directed at the most common bathtub delight: rubber ducky.

Even if the thought did cross their minds, it probably wouldn’t have stopped them from making rubber ducky the poster child for toxic exposure. What better mascot for their observation about “marinating in toxic chemicals” than a smiling innocent duck, long manufactured with phthalates, that literally bobs up and down in many children’s bathwater?

Fortunately for parents everywhere, several manufacturers are bringing “safe” rubber duckies and other bath toys to the market. DANO’s Ducki is one example. It combines a teether and bath toy. Free of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), phthalates, and BPA, Ducki is manufactured with “medical grade materials” that comply with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standards.

Bath toy makers are not required to list product ingredients. However, in the same way that baby bottle manufacturers began labeling their products as “BPA-free” after a firestorm of media criticism drew attention to the chemical bisphenol-A, bath toy makers have started to label their products as “PVC-free,” “phthalate-free,” and “BPA-free.” A simple Google search for “safe bath toys” identifies an abundance of available products.

Those parents who prefer to avoid the rubber ducky altogether can substitute food-safe products such as drinking cups or measuring cups.