I'm not sure how it's the holiday season again, because it seems like it just ended yesterday.  I am particularly distressed about how Christmas continues to invade  November - this year, here in Charlottesville, the town lit its Christmas tree before Thanksgiving.  Despite all we are hearing about the economy, the retail chaos has started.  Money is tight for a lot of people, and this naturally leads people to purchase less expensive toys for their kids.  Unfortunately, it is usually the cheaper toys that are poorly designed and poorly made.  Parents should be vigilant in inspecting all toys bought for or given to their children. 

 

But it's important that parents know what to look for.  In that vein, the U.S. Public Interest Research Group (USPIRG) has recently released their 24^th annual report on toy safety entitled "Trouble in Toyland" which draws attention to toys which might present a danger to children.  USPIRG's report divides "dangerous" toys into 16 different categories, including toys that are too noisy and may endanger children's hearing, toys with small or detachable parts that could be accidentally swallowed, and toys that may contain potentially toxic chemicals (lead and phthalates), to name only a few.   

 

And a really cool feature - they also has an interactive smart phone website: http://www.toysafety.mobi to aid shoppers in avoiding already-known toy hazards and to report potential dangers.  So, if you have a question about a toy while your shopping, you can access this site and get an immediate answer.

 

 A recent CNN "American Morning" show examined several toys which were identified in the USPIRG report as containing potential hazards to children, such as the "Real Wood Shape Sorter Barn" made by P&C, which had a toy part on the side of the barn that could be a choking hazard to a child.  Also, Kota and Pals Stompers Triceratops made by Playskool was identified as a toy potentially too noisy for children's ears.  Hasbro, the parent company of Playskool, indicated, however, that this particular "toy complies with all sound requirements" answering USPIRG's concern. A toy identified as potentially toxic to children is "The Elmo Lunch Bag" made by Fast Forward, New York.

Check out toy safety tips after the jump.

Just in time for Christmas, an organization called W.A.T.C.H. (World Against Toys Causing Harm) has released its annual list of the top 10 worst toys.  What amazes me is that all of the hazards here have long been established -- choking hazards, projectiles that can damage eyes, etc - yet these dangerous toys still reach the market.  There is no approval or evaluation process by any government agency for toys - the CPSC only steps in when a problem is identified.  Please go to the next page for the list. 

Click here for a list of the worst toys of all time (complete with Lawn Darts).  These would be funny if not for the fact that each of these put thousands of kids needlessly at risk.

Some hazards are obviously dangerous to kids - the Drano under the sink, a pot of boiling water on the stove, or a car backing out of the driveway.  Those are things we as parents intuitively know can be dangerous to our kids, so we take precautions such as cabinet locks and stove guards to protect them. 

Not all hazards are so obvious, but they can be just as dangerous.  Window blinds are a great example.  They seem innocent enough, and it certainly doesn't seem like a child could hurt himself (or herself) if left alone with one.  Yet, the cords on certain window blinds can present a serious strangulation hazard to young children.  Over the years, hundreds of boys and girls have been seriously injured and even killed by becoming entangled and then strangled by window blind cords.

On Thursday, the CPSC issued two recall alerts.  Popular furniture maker IKEA is recalling its IRIS and ALVINE Roman Blinds, and Green Mountain Vista Inc of Williston, Vt. is recalling its Insulated Black-Out Roller Shades and Insulated Roman Shades. This past April, a one year old girl in Greenwich, Ct.tragically died as a result of strangulation by the cord of an IKEA blind.  She was found in her playpen with the cord from a nearby fully lowered blind wrapped twice around her neck.  This past June, a two year old girl from Bristol, Ct, was nearly strangled by a Green Mountain Vista blind when she placed a cord loop around her neck and then fell.  Luckily, she was saved by her brother.

The CPSC has recalled over 13 cribs and bassinets since the first of the year.  Many feel that the CPSC is not aggressive enough in its recall measures, and that it is not sufficient to permit manufacturers to simply issue retrofit kits to satisfy the recalls.  The Illinois Attorney General, Lisa Madigan, has taken matters into her own hands, and should be commended for her actions.

Here's what's happened.  A company called Simplicity has had a lot of problems with recalls over the last year, some as a result of infant deaths.  Due to the recalls, Simplicity was forced into bankruptcy.  A company called SFCA, Inc, purchased the assets of Simplicity. That's fine, except it appears that the only thing SFCA wanted to do was reap profits, and did not seem particularly interested in helping to save the lives of children.  SFCA would not cooperate whatsoever with the CPSC recalls.  Given that children's lives are at stake, Madigan did not feel that the CPSC's response to SFCA was sufficient, so she undertook her own action to force SFCA to stop marketing these dangerous cribs.  She's to be applauded.

AG Madigan has also put out a very useful guide for identifying which cribs have recently been recalled, as well as safe sleeping tips for infants.

Email Bryan Slaughter

Given all that is known about crib safety, and how long the industry has known about potential hazards, it amazes me that we still have a problem with dangerous cribs.  Over the last month, there have been four crib recalls, all for entrapment and suffocation hazards.  As is too often the case, it took the death or serious injury of a child for these recalls to happen.  The recalled cribs are:

• The Playkids U.S.A. convertible crib/playpen/bassinet/bed,
• Delta drop side cribs manufactured prior to 2006
• Additional Delta Drop Side Cribs
  
• Simplicity Brand Drop Side Cribs
  

The Delta recall involves over 1,500,000 cribs.  The danger involves missing or failing safety pegs for the drop rails.  The CPSC is aware of two deaths and other instances of entrapment involving these cribs.

One of the important things I'd like to do with this site is provide a place where parents can get quick, easy access to recall information for children's products.  Up-to-date recalls will be posted, and eventually we'll have a sign-up for a monthly or weekly electronic newsletter that will, among other things, contain current recall information. 

But what is a recall of a consumer product such as a toy or child safety seat?  A recall is a corrective action by a company with regard to a product that it has discovered may be unreasonably dangerous to users.  The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has jurisdiction over toys and child safety seats sold in the United States, as well as other consumer products such as household appliances, sporting equipment and furnaces.  It does not have jurisdiction over motor vehicles, drugs, pesticides or medical devices (other government agencies have jurisdiction over those).