Baltimore—“While
we can report substantial progress after more than two decades of
advocacy on behalf of America’s littlest consumers, Maryland PIRG still
found trouble in toyland,” said Johanna Neumann, policy advocate with
Maryland PIRG.
According
to the most recent data from the Consumer Product Safety Commission
(CPSC), almost 73,000 children under the age of five were treated in
emergency rooms for toy-related injuries in 2005. Twenty children died
from toy-related injuries last year.
“Toys
should be for fun. They should not be deadly objects. These deaths are
entirely preventable and we should take the necessary actions to assure
that our children are protected,” said Dr. Marty Wasserman, Executive
Director of MedChi, the Maryland State Medical Society.
"I
applaud MarylandPIRG for providing this valuable service to Maryland
consumers each year," said Maryland Attorney General-elect Doug
Gansler. This report arms parents with the information they need to
protect their children from unsafe toys."
The
21st annual Maryland PIRG Trouble in Toyland report offers safety
guidelines for purchasing toys for small children and provides examples
of toys currently on store shelves that pose potential safety hazards.
Maryland PIRG’s research focused on several categories of toy dangers:
toys that pose choking hazards, toys with powerful magnets, toys that
contain lead, and toys that pose strangulation hazards.
Choking Hazards
In 1979, the CPSC banned the sale of toys for children under three if
they contain small parts. The 1994 Child Safety Protection Act mandated
an explicit choke hazard warning on toys with small parts for children
between three and six.
Maryland
PIRG researchers found toys for children under three with small parts.
They also found toys with small parts for children under six without
the required choke hazard warning.
Children continue to
choke on toys that meet the letter of the law. In September, Playskool
recalled the Team Talkin’ Tool Bench after two children suffocated when
the toy’s oversized plastic nails became lodged in their throats.
“Toddlers
put everything in their mouths,” said Neumann. “CPSC should make the
small parts test more protective of children under three and consider
warning labels for toys shaped like corks or the toy nails that caused
two children to suffocate,” continued Neumann.
Magnetic Toys
Toymakers have started using powerful magnets in building toys and
magnetic jewelry. If a child swallows more than one magnet, they can
attract each other in the body and cause a bowel obstruction or
life-threatening perforation. A little boy died last Thanksgiving and
many others have had life-saving surgery after swallowing magnets from
MEGA Brands’ Magnetix toys.
“Swallowing a magnet is not like swallowing a penny. Powerful magnets can wreak havoc inside the body,” said Neumann.
MEGA
Brands has modified the design of Magnetix and placed a label on the
toy’s packaging warning parents about the dangers of magnets. Maryland
PIRG called on CPSC to require a warning label on all magnetic toys
that tells parents to seek immediate medical attention if a child
swallows magnets.
Lead in Jewelry
Children exposed to lead can suffer delayed mental and physical
development or even death. In February, a four year old died of lead
poisoning after he swallowed a bracelet charm that contained 99% lead.
Maryland PIRG researchers went to just a few stores and easily found
four items of children’s jewelry that contain high levels of lead,
ranging from 1.8% lead to 34% lead by weight. In August of this year,
The Baltimore City Health Department announced plans to ban the sale of
some high lead content jewelry in Baltimore in August.
“It
has been known for decades that lead poses serious health risks to
children,” said Baltimore Health Commissioner Dr. Josh Sharfstein.
“Accidental ingestion of some children’s jewelry recently found on the
market could pose a very serious threat to life and health.”
Maryland
PIRG called on CPSC to enact and enforce mandatory requirements for
jewelry manufacturers, retailers, and suppliers to ensure their
products do not contain lead.
Strangulation Hazards
CPSC has decided to take another look at the dangers posed by water
yo-yos after a five-year-old Bellevue, Washington boy almost suffocated
in October when the toy’s stretchy cord wrapped tightly around his neck
several times. CPSC has recorded about 400 injuries to the eyes, face
and neck since this toy came on the market three years ago.
“CPSC should not wait until a child dies to protect children from the dangers posed by playing with this toy,” said Neumann.
Maryland PIRG called on CPSC to follow the state of Illinois’s lead and ban the water yo-yo immediately.
Neumann
reminded parents that the toy list in the Maryland PIRG report is only
a sampling of the potential hazards on store shelves.
“Shoppers should examine all toys carefully for hidden dangers before they make a purchase this holiday season,” Neumann said.
