How Dangerous Is Lead in Dishes and Crystal?

Q: I often buy vintage dishes, glasses, and serving ware from thrift shops and estate sales, and I inherited a good bit of it from my family, too. I’d love to use it, but I understand older dishes and crystal were often made with lead. Is it safe to use my antique crystal glasses, decanters, and dishes? Are there things I should look out for if I want to avoid lead in dishes and crystal?

A: You’re right to worry about ingesting lead, especially from older dishes and glasses. Before 1971, dishes were often made with lead glazes. Some had decorations painted over the glaze with lead-based paints. Crystal made with a higher lead content was prized for its greater clarity and the beautiful ringing tone it makes when struck. But we now know that these beautiful pieces can leach lead into food or drink.

At high levels of exposure, lead in dishes and crystal can be dangerous to the central nervous system and brain. Lead poisoning can cause coma, convulsions, even death. Lead is especially dangerous to children, who can be poisoned by smaller doses. Even if they survive severe lead poisoning, it can leave them with intellectual disabilities and behavioral disorders. In adults, high lead levels can lead to high blood pressure or brain, kidney or reproductive health issues. Lead may also be responsible for a large percentage of cardiac illnesses. According to The Lancet, the esteemed medical journal, high lead levels can lead to heart disease, stroke, chronic kidney disease, and early death.

Lead in Crystal & Glass

What we call crystal is a type of glass that contains certain minerals that strengthen and harden it. This makes it suitable for molding into thin, delicate shapes. The percentage of minerals may run from 2% to 30%. Crystal can be etched, or decorated with a series of cuts that gather and refract light. It is brighter and more transparent than standard glass. This makes it especially beautiful for decorative vessels and decorations like ornaments.

According to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA), lead glasses can be used infrequently and with care without posing a worry to non-pregnant adults. (Pregnant people and children should probably avoid using leaded crystal to be extra safe.)

Liquid shouldn’t be stored in leaded crystal overnight

Something you’ll want to avoid is storing food or drink in lead crystal. Don’t keep liquids, especially acidic ones, in decanters, cruets, or jars for longer than it takes to consume them. Acidic foods or liquids like salad dressings, mustard, or alcohol can leach lead from crystal more quickly. The FDA says If you enjoy wine or spirits from a crystal glass within two hours of pouring, and don’t drink from lead crystal daily, you should be fine. But don’t decant more into a decanter than you’ll consume within a couple of hours, or store leftover alcohol in a leaded crystal container overnight.

If you’re concerned about avoiding any lead from crystal, much modern crystal is lead-free. Look for the lead-free label. This crystal is safe for anyone to enjoy for everyday use.

Don’t feel good drinking from crystal, but don’t want to get rid of it? Crystal glasses and pitchers make lovely vases or candle holders. I cluster crystal glasses, bowls, and candlesticks of various heights together and display them on silver trays or on my mantelpiece. They also look wonderful combined with ornaments on a silver or gold tray during the holiday season.

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Lead in Porcelain Glazes & Ceramics

Vintage or antique European and U.S. porcelains and ceramics often had lead glazes. U.S. laws only required that glazes on new products be lead-free as of 1971. That means mugs, plates, and bowls made in the 1960s or before were often glazed with leaded glazes. To make them more hard-wearing, glassware from the 1960s and before often had traces of lead as well.

Happily, if you have vintage dishes in good condition and are tempted to eat off them, you can test their lead content with inexpensive test kits to check for lead content. That way you can feel safer about using them, or know whether they’re best used as decorations instead of actual dinnerware. Dishes that have very small traces of lead in their glazes are safe to eat from on occasion. The amount of lead in the glaze and the frequency of use are the most important things to consider when deciding whether a dish, cup, or glass is safe to use.

Using chipped or cracked dishes isn’t safe

Whether they’re vintage or brand new, if dishes are chipped or cracked, don’t use them. Older dishes may contain lead, and cracks make it easier for lead to leach out into your food. Even if they’re modern and lead-free, cracks and chips in dishes can harbor bacteria that can sicken you.

Some modern dishes are created with intentional crackling over part or all of the surface. These dishes are then covered with a glaze that seals the cracks to keep the dishes safe for use. However, a crazed or crackled finish that has clearly developed over time leaves thousands of microcracks all over a dish. These cracks allow the lead under the glaze to leach into food on the plate or cup. For these reasons, cracked dishes and cups should be retired from use with food or drink right away. If you don’t feel ready to toss them, use them as saucers under plants or vases, but never use them for food again.

Highly leaded dishes should be used only as decorations

Highly decorated porcelains from China and traditional ceramic dishware from Ecuador, Mexico, Morocco, Uzbekistan, or Turkey often contain quite high lead levels. This makes them unsafe to use around food, even briefly. These are best used as display pieces on walls or in china cabinets. Some dishes from these countries are labeled as food-safe. If they don’t have such labels, assume that they’re leaded and should be used only for decoration.

One way to use pretty plates that test positive for lead content is to use them as charger plates underneath smaller modern plates. This way you can add their beauty to your dinner table; just don’t let them come in contact with food.

Is It Okay to Put Leaded Dishes in the Dishwasher?

If you’re tempted to clean up your old leaded dishes before you display them, be sure to wash them by hand. Keep all leaded dishes out of the dishwasher. The heat of the dishwasher may damage the surface of the dishes, making them more likely to leach lead into the hot water. That hot water spreads the lead to everything else in the dishwasher, including all surfaces of the dishwasher’s interior. That lead can then spread onto the dishes you’ll wash and dine from later. And when you dry heavily leaded dishes after washing, don’t use your dishtowel, which could transfer that lead to your dinner dishes. Use a disposable paper towel to dry them instead.

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Table settings at Peterhof Palace, St. Petersburg, Russia | Ji-Elle (CC BY-SA 4.0)