Dangerous toys pose continued health threats despite recalls

Dangerous toys pose continued health threats despite recalls

Manufacturers and the federal government regularly issue recall notices for dangerous toys and other defective products, but that action does not necessarily take the peril out of playrooms in Kentucky or in the rest of the country. It is illegal for retailers to sell a recalled product, but dangerous children’s toys can often wind up in second hand shops and in Pike County neighborhood garage sales. Unfortunately, these passed-on hazards can lead to injury and death.

Asphyxiation from the use of a toy caused seven deaths in the U.S. in 2013, according the Consumer Product Safety Commission. In the same year, emergency rooms across the country treated 256,700 toy-related injuries. Safe Kids Worldwide states that 45 percent of incidents result in injuries to the head and face. Common injuries from dangerous toys include choking, burns and poisoning from paint that has excessive lead content.

Many of the dangerous children’s toys that cause these injuries stay in circulation long after a recall has been issued. Parents, grandparents and well-meaning friends often fail to research whether a toy is under a recall notice, and donate or pass down the plaything to another child. While one child may have used the toy without incident, the next child may suffer the consequences of a defective product.

Children will naturally experience some injury in the course of growing up. There are regulations that are designed to protect children from falling vulnerable to the dangers of defective products. However, some of these playthings slip through the cracks and find their way back into the toy box.