With the holiday shopping season well under way, an advocacy group in Massachusetts is out with its annual warning about toy safety. The findings echo a recent report in New York: many toys on store shelves are simply unsafe.
The Public Interest Research Group released its 29th annual Trouble in Toyland report this week. Beth Ramey, a consumer advocate with the Massachusetts chapter of the national organization, discussed the report at a news conference Tuesday at the downtown Springfield YMCA, as a group of small children looked on.
" The message is pretty clear," said Ramey. " We need to protect America's youngest consumers. Parents and care-givers should look out for common hazards when shopping for toys this holiday season."
The common hazards Ramey identified are toxic materials, extremely loud toys, and small toys that pose a choking risk.
" When our researchers went out this past fall they found lost of products that could harm or poison our children. We found these on line and in national retail chain stores and dollar stores."
Among the toys Ramey displayed was a sheriff’s badge set that she said contained lead, a tambourine with chromium, and a “Hello Kitty” hair clip that lab tests show contain phthalates -- all have been shown to impair children’s development.
She also warned about a toy cell phone with a loud ringer and the “Monster Treads” toy tractor that threaten children’s hearing.
Ramey said parents should use a common item found in the bathroom – a toilet paper tube – to determine if a toy, or one with small parts, is a choking hazard.
" If anything fits through this ( the toilet paper tube), it is not suitable for children under the age of 3. It is a very convenient way to test all your toys."
A 2008 federal law has made toys safer, according to Ramey. She applauded the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission for recently banning small powerful toy magnet sets.
Ramey urged people shopping for toys to buy items that are age appropriate and to consult the website toysafetytips.org for information about specific toys.
Democratic State Representative Angelo Puppolo spoke at the news conference and commended MassPIRG for annually bringing the toy safety information to the public’s attention.
" What it is all about is getting information to the public to make sure families now the dangers of some of these toys," said Puppolo. " The toys look inviting on a store shelf, but you get them home and a tragedy could happen."
A press release from the Toy Industry Association criticized the Trouble in Toyland report. The association claimed improper testing methods were used and it asserted that 20 percent of the items in the report are not technically classified as toys and are therefore not required to meet federal safety standards.
