The massively popular lululemon athletica yoga retail chain is inviting customers to return some of its reusable shopping bags on concerns that they may contain lead.

The bags, which come in various sizes, have the recognizable red-and-white “manifesto” messages on one side — inspiring people to “Do one thing a day that scares you,” or “Drink fresh water and as much water as you can” — and large photos of various athletes on the other side, such as track-and-field Paralympian Andrea Holmes and skeleton medallist Melissa Hollingsworth, said the anonymous employee.

These versions of the bags featuring athletes’ photos — which have been in circulation since the Vancouver 2010 Olympics in February — are the only ones potentially affected by lead traces.

“All available research indicates these bags comply with all applicable health and safety regulations and are safe for our guests’ use,” lululemon CEO Christine Day said in a news release.

Day also said the bags were obtained from lululemon’s newest supplier.

“We choose our partners carefully and the manufacturer of the [bags] is known for its green practices, and is co-operating fully with our review,” Day said in the release. “While we conduct that review, we believe that from a long-term environmental perspective it is better to stop distributing these bags.”

Customers who return the bags will be provided with replacements.

The Vancouver-based retail store prides itself on fostering healthy, active, fun lifestyles and advocates for “socially responsible business decisions and encourage our employees to make responsible lifestyle commitments that positively affect our local and global communities.”

“We are committed to manufacturing our products in good conscience and in turn are committed to improve the communities where our factories operate,” reads an information document from the lululemon website.

The Tampa Tribune sparked calls for a federal investigation earlier this year after the newspaper tested similar reusable bags, some of which had lead levels that exceeded U.S. limits for paint. The more elaborate the pictures on the bag, the higher level of toxicity, the newspaper discovered.

Some bags contained 117 parts per million of lead, while others came in at 194. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission allows children’s toys to have 300 parts per million of lead in them, although the standard is being lowered to 100 in 2011. Any paint on American-sold products is supposed to have a maximum of 90 parts per million of lead.

While it’s difficult to extract the lead from the bags, the newspaper said the paint can chip off when the bag begins to break down.

Shares of lululemon have been rising steadily in the last few months, closing at $74.71 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Tuesday, up about $20 from a month earlier.

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