Anchorage Daily News Covers Our Toy Safety Report
Toy risks include lead, plastics, group warns parents
REPORT: Small parts and loud sounds are also on the hazard list.
Holiday shoppers should look out for toy hazards such as small parts, loud sounds, soft plastics and lead contamination, consumer advocates warned Tuesday.
These dangers were highlighted by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group in its 24th annual “Trouble in Toyland” report, the first since sweeping consumer safety legislation went into effect earlier this year.
The organization focused on four hazards: small parts that can choke children younger than 3 years old, loud toys that can cause hearing damage, lead-tainted toys and soft plastic toys that contain chemicals called phthalates.
Matt Wallace, head of AkPIRG, the Alaska affiliate of U.S. PIRG, said some toys tested exceeded the 85-decibel sound level, the threshold established under American Society for Testing and Materials standards.
As for phthalates, Congress this year banned toys and other children’s products containing more than 0.1 percent of phthalates. But some products contained concentrations up to 7.2 percent, Wallace said.
You can read the full story at the ADN website