Maryland Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) released its 28th annual survey of toy safety, the 2013 Trouble in Toyland report.
In this report, Maryland PIRG provides safety guidelines for consumers when purchasing toys for small children and provides examples of toys currently on store shelves that may pose potential safety hazards.
Over the past twenty-eight years, the report has identified hazards in toys and children’s products that could cause acute injuries, from choking hazards from toys with small parts, to strangulation hazards from cords on pull toys, to laceration hazards from edges that are too sharp, to toxic hazards posed by chemicals in toys. The report has led to more than 150 recalls and other regulatory actions over the years, and has helped educate the public and policymakers on the need for stronger public health and consumer safety standards to protect children from unsafe products. This report continues to help keep children - particularly babies and toddlers - safe, as the majority of all injuries happen to children in the 0-2 age range.
In the 2013 report, PIRG found that:
- lead and other chemicals, such as antimony, arsenic and phthalates, continue to present hazards;
- choking continues to be the major cause of toy-related deaths and injuries, due to small parts or "near small part" toys, improper labels, and toys which could mistakenly be purchased for children under three;
- magnet toys made with neodymium iron boron magnets, such as the Buckyball magnets that are the subject of a CPSC court action, are still available and continue to cause accidents; and
- noisy toys, exceeding the limit of 65 decibels for toys held close to the ear, were found on shelves.
Maryland PIRG's report includes recommendations for both policymakers and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), to address each of these findings.
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