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Trouble in Toyland: U.S. Public Interest Group’s 2008 Report on Toy Safety

We all know last year was the dreaded “year of the recall’. And we’ve made great strides since then, passing the CPSC reform act, banning phthalates and lead in children’s products.

Trouble is, this law has not gone into effect yet, and the toys are still on the shelves. There is still much work to be done, and many ways we can keep our kids safer with what we buy (or in many cases, don’t buy).

U.S. PIRG continues to fight for the environmental health of families. They recently released the new 2008 report called Trouble in Toyland. It includes guidelines for parents and a downloadable shopping guide to safer toy selection. Here’s a link to the full report as well. In the report, you’ll find pictures of toys on the shelves right now that contain lead and phthalates, chocking hazards and magnets. It’s still infuriating to me that these persist in stores where products are marketed and sold for children.

Some of the tips from the shopping guide include:

“LEAD AND TOXIC CHEMICALS
Some children’s toys and cosmetics maycontain lead or toxic chemicals, including
phthalates. While most lead and phthalateswill be phased out of toys beginning in 2009,
older toys may still contain them.

• Avoid toys made of PVC plastic whichcould contain toxic phthalates posing
developmental hazards; choose unpainted wooden or cloth toys instead.
• Read the labels of play cosmetics and avoid products with xylene,
toluene, or dibutyl phthalate.”

MORE ON LEAD
CPSC, PIRG and children’s health groups have found high levels of lead paint on toys, as well as high levels of lead in vinyl lunchboxes and bibs and in children’s or costume jewelry.

This is a valuable resource for parents making consumer choices for their kids this holiday season (and grandparents, uncles and aunts, friends, etc.). I also just posted a gift guide of responsible retailers, with safer toys mostly made in the U.S., at Non-Toxic Kids.

image: Rubber Ducks by Dan 1980 on Flickr

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« Toy Safety News – Toxins found in 1 out of 3 toys tested
Lower Ninth Ward New Orleans gets $500,000 Eco-Friendly Playground »

Trackbacks

  1. Lead Poisoning from Paint Still a Kids Safety Issue : Eco Child’s Play says:
    August 26, 2009 at 12:13 pm

    […] parts per million (ppm). Now the limit is set even lower, at 90 ppm in the US and this is now the lead paint limit for toys, […]

    Reply
  2. Remembering When Scholastic Meant Good Books says:
    November 13, 2010 at 8:09 am

    […] with some sort of cheap plastic zipper pull or bracelet- the types of toys I avoid due to the possibility of the presence of lead.   By packaging the books with these toys, Scholastic succeeds in driving the price up.  As […]

    Reply
  3. U.S. PIRG Trouble in Toyland 2012: Don’t give dangerous toys this holiday season says:
    November 26, 2012 at 10:42 am

    […] not much has changed since we first reported on Trouble in Toyland in 2008. Phthalates and lead are still of grave […]

    Reply

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About Eco Child’s Play

Our ethos is to provide news, information, and opinions on natural, green parenting to help your family live a greener, healthier life! Additionally, we offer personal consulting services to help you achieve your green living goals.

Jennifer is a vegetarian, yoga teacher, gardener, hiker, teacher, and mother that has been living off-the-grid for over 20 years.

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