Three years after the passage of child safety legislation, risks to children from hazardous toys have been diminished–though not eliminated, a national consumer group said Tuesday.
The No. 1 risk to children at play remains the simple balloon, said Vivien Watts, director of the Illinois Public Interest Research Group.
Despite a decrease in injuries, the group’s 12th annual “Trouble in Toyland” survey still turned up 18 common toys deemed dangerous. Among the toys listed is a projectile launcher called Stomp Rocket that the group said poses eye hazards.
“Shoppers should examine toys carefully for hidden dangers before they make a purchase,” Watts said.
At least 147 children in the U.S. died playing with toys from 1990 to 1996.
But the New York-based Toy Manufacturers of America, which represents 290 producers and importers of toys and holiday decorations, disputed the group’s survey, calling the “perennial” lists “meaningless and frightening” to consumers.
The manufacturers group said, “Year after year, the U.S. government has tested toys placed on consumer group’s lists, only to discover that most meet product safety standards.”
The trade association also criticized the timing of the list, saying they were “choosing to wait until the holidays to garner maximum publicity to further their own agenda.”
Watts called the statement “ridiculous,” saying they announce the list when parents are buying the most toys.
Nychelle Fleming, a spokeswoman for the Consumer Product Safety Commission, agreed that most of the toys on the group’s annual list have met regulatory standards.
“But even if two toys on the list are found not to meet standards and they are removed and save even one life, that is significant,” Fleming said.
Fleming said the commission would test the toys on this year’s list. In fiscal 1997, which ended Oct. 1, the commission recalled 239 toys and toy-related products, Fleming said.
In 1996 alone, said Watts, 13 children died playing with toys. Ten of them died from choking, and seven of those children choked on balloons. An estimated 140,700 children were treated for toy-related injuries in hospital emergency rooms in 1996, declining from 150,800 the year before, according to the commission.
Nearly half of the 1996 injuries were to children younger than 5 years old. Choking on small toy parts, balloons and small balls continues to be the leading cause of toy-related deaths, killing about 15 children each year since 1980, according to commission statistics.
“Little kids pick up the balloons, open them and inadvertently inhale a small portion of the balloon,” said Dr. Steven Krug, head of emergency medicine at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago.
