Group unveils risky toys list
Slime, spying Furbies among those cited by state organization
The Connecticut Public Interest Research Group presented the 34th annual report on dangerous toys for the holiday season last week at Connecticut Children’s.
This year’s “Trouble in Toyland” report prepared by the US PIRG Education Fund includes warnings about a variety of threats from commonly available toys. Here are some warnings from this year’s “naughty list” of toys:
Choking hazards
If a toy can slide through a toilet paper roll, it’s small enough for a child to choke on, said ConnPIRG associate Sam Donahue. Such toys include those with small, detachable pieces and figures like fishing games or board games. Mini magnet balls are also a high-risk toy for children.
“In just over a month, two doctors … in Portland removed 54 small magnets from four children,” he said. “These small, powerful magnets are used in construction sets, education tiles, and sculpture kits.”
Any toy with small pieces should be kept away from children under 3, while older children should still be monitored.
Uninflated or broken balloons are the “primary cause of suffocation deaths” from toys, he added. Parents may want to consider skipping balloons at toddlers’ parties and holiday gatherings.
Loud toys
Parents should also be wary of loud toys. Because children’s hearing is still developing, sirens or signals are much louder to them than to adults. ConnPIRG said Haktoys’ “ATS Battery Operated Bump & Go Action 8” Police Car” and Kicko’s “Toy Gun Blue LightUp Noise Blaster” likely violate noise standards set by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
To test if a toy may be too loud, parents should hold it up close to their ears. If they experience any discomfort, the toy is likely to damage children’s hearing.
Hidden toxins
ConnPIRG found levels of boron, lead and cadmium far beyond the legal limits in a number of toys. Knock-off toys purchased online from websites like Amazon have a particularly high risk of containing toxic substances.
One xylophone sold on Amazon contained four times the legal limit of lead, while some fidget spinners have been found to contain 300 times the limit, said ConnPIRG. Lead poising impairs children’s mental and physical development.
The U.S. does not have regulations regarding boron in children’s toys, unlike the EU. Boron, an element in cleaning agent borax, causes nausea, vomiting and longterm damage to the digestive system if ingested. For the second year in a row, testers found high levels of boron in children’s slime kits. Many of these mixing agents are unregulated and do not have clear warning labels, said Donohue.
Cadmium, commonly found in children’s dress-up jewelry, can lead to cancer and osteoporosis later in life. Parents are advised to supervise children under 6 to ensure they do not chew jewelry or put it in their mouths.
Data-stealing ‘smart toys’
Parents should be wary of any toys that communicate with children. In the past, toys like the “My Friend Cayla” doll or the “Furby Connect” stored recordings of children’s voices and potentially personal data on non-secure networks vulnerable to hackers. Tablets and online toys may also leak private information. To mitigate the risk of such violations, adults should set strong parental controls on any toys that connect to an outside network and test toys to see what questions they ask children.