Protecting Your Child From Harmful Toys

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Health Canada and Mexico’s Consumer Protection Federal Agency (PROFECO) held their third North America Consumer Product Safety Summit in Mexico City recently. Protecting young children from dangerous and illegal toys is a shared goal among these safety agencies.

The regulators have collaborated amongst each other through joint industry trainings, consumer outreach and education as well as recall announcements of harmful toys and children’s products.

“As we approach the holiday season, our three jurisdictions are working as one to protect children in all three nations from harmful toys,” said CPSC Chairman Elliot F. Kaye.  “Despite our real advances in toy safety, we are still finding too many violative toys at our borders. All consumers, regardless of which of our three nations they come from, deserve us working together to protect them.  This is why working toward seamless surveillance across North American borders is a critical part of our collaboration with Health Canada and PROFECO.”

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)

It’s that time of year again when your kids toy box will most likely fill up to the brim – Here are some tips to keep in mind this holiday season:

1. For children under the age of 3 years, avoid small toys with small parts which can cause choking.
2. Riding toys such as scooters and skateboards can go very fast and falls could be fatal. Safety gear such as helmets and knee pads should be worn properly at all times and they should be sized to fit. Do not allow your child to ride on streets or roadways, rather make use of dedicated parks.
3. Balloons may seem rather innocent but children can actually choke or suffocate on deflated or broken balloons. Children can also be strangled by a balloon string. Keep deflated balloons away from your young child and discard torn balloons immediately.
4. Magnetic toys are covered by a strong safety standard that aims to prevent magnets from being swallowed. High-powered magnet sets which have small magnets are extremely dangerous and should be kept away from children. Whether the product is marketed for children or adults, play or building sets with small magnets should be kept away from small children.
5. Once gifts are open, keep toys appropriate for older children away from younger siblings.
6. Chargers and adapters can pose thermal burn hazards to young children, therefore battery charging should be supervised by adults. Pay attention to the instructions and warnings on battery chargers.