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Community Corner

No Toying Around With Safety

Web sites help parents keep up with product recalls.

Childhood’s treasured toys often play a significant role in development and in memory making, but choosing safe, educational and fun toys for our children can be daunting.

Many of us baby-proof our homes by using electrical outlet plugs and baby gates on stairwells. Choosing safe toys is also important.

Toys should be chosen according to your child’s developmental level. Most toys have an age recommendation sticker that can help you choose. If you have children under age 3, you'll want to steer clear of any toys that have small parts because of the choking hazard. (To see whether a toy could be a choking threat, use the toilet-paper-roll test. If the toy can fit within the cardboard tube, it is too small for a young child to play with.) Also avoid cords longer than 12 inches and small magnets, and check your home for these hazards.

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Make sure toys are well-made and in good condition. Sometimes older toys have parts that can easily fall off or break. Although laws limiting the amount of lead allowable in children’s and babies’ items were passed after a flurry of recalls in 2007, older toys that predate those laws might still contain lead paint.

Regularly checking the recall list for any products that you may own can make your home safer. You can find information about safety recalls and updated lists on the Consumer Product Safety Commission's Web site (CPSC.gov). Babycenter.com also has a list of recalls that is updated daily.

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With most toys being made in China and overseas, it is surprisingly difficult to find playthings made in the U.S. anymore. You can find an extensive list of toys that are still made in America on ToysMadeinAmerica.com. Little Tikes, a manufacturer based in Hudson, OH, still makes quality toys in the U.S. Its classic Cozy Coupe, a plastic push car, is the best-selling vehicle in the U.S. Buying American-made products not only helps you choose products that are made to the strictest standards, but it also supports the U.S. economy.

While I was writing this, I discovered that there was a new recall on my B.O.B. Revolution jogging stroller. Being updated and vigilant with toy and baby-item recalls may be an arduous task, but it is very necessary.

Now, after scrutinizing all of my daughter’s toys, it’s time to get down to the business of playing!

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