Select Children's Toys with Safety in Mind
Follow the
safety guidelines
According
to the Home Safety Council's State of Home Safety in America
(2002), emergency departments reported nearly 170,000 visits due
to injuries related to toys at home in a single year.
To help reduce the risk of serious injury, always follow safety
guidelines when choosing toys for children. Before
choosing toys and games for little ones on your shopping list,
consider each child's age, skills and abilities. Toys that
are beyond your child's age and developmental ability can be
unsafe for him or her, so select toys that are appropriate
rather than those children can 'grow into'. Consider the
following guidelines for selecting toys for your child:
When purchasing toys for
infants and toddlers, select toys, puzzles, rattles
and teething toys that are too large to be
swallowed.
Read the labels and
other packaging information and base your selection
on age recommendations.
Look for
'washable/hygienic materials' or similar labeling on
stuffed toys and dolls and 'flame retardant/flame
resistant' labeling on fabric products and costumes.
Read assembly and use instructions to ensure the toy
is appropriate for the child you have in mind.
If you purchase stuffed toys, look for those that
are rated safe for infants, which will ensure
specific safety features, such as secure attachment
of the stuffed toys' eyes and noses and
non-removable squeaking mechanisms.
Avoid toys with long
strings or cords, which could entangle and strangle
a child.
The Home Safety Council
recommends against using latex balloons in homes
with young children, as they can swallow an unfilled
or broken balloon and suffocate.
Remove and discard
plastic wrapping and bags as soon as the toy is
opened, as these items are a suffocation hazard to
young children.
Look carefully at
infants' toys and dispose of those with small broken
parts that could be lodged in an infant's throat.
Motorized and electric
toys and games and toys with heavy, sharp and
pointed parts or edges can be especially dangerous
for young children.
Adult games, such as
darts, should be stored up high, out of the reach of
all children.
Always supervise
children closely. Don't permit younger children to
play with toys designed for older children or
adults.
Small parts testing
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) bans
products with small parts to be intended for use by children
under three. CPSC considers a small part to be 'any object
that fits completely into a specially designed test cylinder
2.25 inches long by 1.25 inches wide...' To approximate
the manufacturers' test, use a common toilet paper roll
(typically measuring 1.5-1.75 inches wide) to measure toy parts,
if any toy parts fit inside the roll, choose another toy until
your child is older than three.
According
to the Home Safety Council's State of Home Safety in America
(2002), emergency departments reported nearly 170,000 visits due
to injuries related to toys at home in a single year. 
The
