Just in time for the holidays, U.S. PIRG warns us about all the toys that will choke, cut, and otherwise harm our kids in its "Trouble in Toyland" report. And read PIRG's tips for avoiding the purchase of hazardous toys in the first place.
Here's the report's executive summary:
The 2012 Trouble in Toyland report is the 27th annual U.S.
Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) survey of toy safety. In this
report, U.S. PIRG provides safety guidelines for consumers when
purchasing toys for small children and provides examples of toys
currently on store shelves that may pose potential safety hazards. Over the past twenty-seven years, the U.S. PIRG report has identified
hazards in toys and children’s products that could cause acute
injuries, from small parts that pose a choking hazard, to strangulation
hazards from cords on pull toys, to laceration hazards from edges that
are too sharp, to toxic hazards posed by chemicals in toys. Our report
has led to at least 150 recalls and other regulatory actions over the
years, and has helped us educate the public and policymakers on the need
for stronger public health and consumer safety standards and for
stronger federal laws to protect children from unsafe products. This
report continues to be an important endeavor in keeping children –
particularly babies and toddlers – safe, as the majority of all injuries
happen to children in the 0-2 age range. The enactment of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA)
of 2008 made great strides in toy safety and strengthened the ability of
the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to protect consumers,
including the littlest consumers—children. Although policymakers delayed
implementation of its most stringent lead standard rules and enacted
some narrow exceptions in 2011, on the whole the law has been protected
from attempts to undermine it. However, we remain vigilant as a variety
of regulatory threats to the CPSC’s tools and authority remain under
consideration by policymakers.
Read PIRG's press release as well.
