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Is This Toy Safe?

In 2008 Congress passed the first major overhaul of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) since its creation. The new compliance laws provided for tough new bans on lead and phthalates, required larger printed warning messages on toy packaging, cracked down on smaller toy pieces that could choke a child and greatly improved CPSC’s ability to monitor and hold wrongdoers accountable. Toy vendors were required to be fully compliant as of this past February.

Toy recalls have dropped dramatically from 2007 when 45 million toys and other children’s products were classified as unsafe. Still there is no magic bullet to instantly make ALL toys safe. With that in mind, the US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) published its 24th Annual Report on Safety for the Toy Industry with guidelines to help parents in purchasing toys for little ones. It also provides examples of toys that may pose potential safety hazards.

The main areas in the report concentrate on choking hazards, excessively loud toys, and toxins like lead and phthalates in children’s products. Key findings:

CHOKING HAZARDS

The law bans small parts in toys for children under three and requires an explicit, prominent warning label on toys with small parts for children between the ages of three and six. In addition, balls with a diameter smaller than 1.75 inches are banned for children under three years old. Unfortunately choking on small parts, small balls and balloons remains a leading cause of toy related deaths and injuries. In 2009 alone, 5.3 million toys and other children’s products were recalled due to choking hazards.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Avoid small toys or parts of toys that can fit entirely into a toilet paper tube.
Avoid small balls and round objects. Balls should be at least 1.75” in diameter for children under three.
Avoid cylindrical pieces of toys that can lodge in a child’s airway.
Balloons and pieces of balloon can completely block a child’s airway. Never give balloons to children under 8. Mylar balloons are a safer alternative.
Avoid hand me down hazards – keep toys for older kids away from young children.

LOUD TOYS

Almost 15 percent of children ages 6 to 17 show signs of hearing loss. Noise-induced hearing loss can be caused by a one-time exposure to loud sound as well as by repeated exposure to sounds at various loudness levels over an extended period of time.

In March 2007, the American Society for Testing and Materials adopted a voluntary acoustics standard for toys, setting the loudness threshold for most toys at 85 decibels, and for toys intended for use “close to the ear” at 65 dB.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

If a toy seems too loud for your ears, it is probably too loud for your child. Don’t buy it.
Toys used close to the ear (like toy cell phones) should not be louder than 65 decibels, measured from 10 inches away. More info here.
Other toys should not be louder than 85 decibels measured from 10 inches away.
For “loud toys” you already own: take the batteries and/or cover the toy’s speakers with tape.

TOXINS

Exposure to lead can affect almost every organ and system in the human body, especially the central nervous system. Lead is especially toxic to the brains of young children. Despite the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) bans, in 2009 the CPSC has recalled nearly 1.3 million toys or other children’s products for violations of the lead paint standard and an additional 102,700 toys and other children’s products for violation of the 300 ppm lead standard.

According to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), levels of phthalates found in humans are higher than levels shown to cause adverse health effects. The data also show phthalate levels are highest in children. Still despite a CPSIA ban, 2 toys were found this year that exceeded the maximum phthalate levels.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Keep costume/novelty jewelry away from young children.
You can screen a piece of jewelry or toy for lead using a home lead tester available at the hardware store. (This is a screening method, and should not be relied upon as a definitive test.)
Check www.recalls.gov for recalled toys.
Avoid plastic toys labeled as “PVC” They often contains phthalate softeners. Look for toys labeled “phthalate-free.”
Choose cloth or unpainted wooden toys instead of soft plastic toys.
Read the labels of play cosmetics and avoid products with xylene, toluene or phthalates.
Avoid plastic bath toys or bath books.

For parents concerned about toxin exposure, the “Absolute Greatest Guide to Green Gifts for Kids” from Healthy Child Healthy World and www.HealthyStuff.org can be excellent resources

WHAT’S A PARENT TO DO?

The CPSC is one small agency and there are numerous new toys produced every year in the US…as well as imported from other countries. Unfortunately that means that CPSC is not able to test all toys, and not all toys on store shelves meet CPSC standards. This also means that there is no comprehensive list of potentially hazardous toys. There are things however that a safety conscious parent can do:

Examine toys carefully for potential dangers before you make a purchase. US PIRG’s annual survey of toy safety should come in handy if you need an example of a dangerous toys for any of the categories mentioned.
Shop with U.S. PIRG’s Toy Safety tips noted above in each section.
Report unsafe toys or toy-related injuries to the CPSC

As always, in the end, it comes down to you and I being vigilant in the toys we purchase. Hopefully the tips we’ve provided can be of some help…for the holidays…and beyond.

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