In the news

Ohio PIRG Education Fund
10 TV
10 TV Consumer Alert


They include ones that can be too loud, too toxic, or too small.

The group shopped stores like Target, Walmart and Toys R Us and found a number of concerns, including choking hazards.

“This is a toy hotdog, would be banned for children.  See it would fit easily in the tube and thus can easily be swallowed by a child,” said Tabitha Woodruff, Ohio PIRG Advocate.

The same for powerful magnets sold as toys.

“They're so strong that if they're inside a child's body and they swallow two of them, they will literally tear through the organs until they find each other,” said Tracy Mehan, Nationwide Children’s Hospital Center For Injury Research and Policy.

They found a Morphobot still being sold even though they said it contains nearly twice as much lead as allowed by current standards.

“If in fact this was manufactured before August 2011, it's subject to the old standard of 300 ppm and can legally still be sold even though new toys are held to a higher standard,” said Woodruff.

They located a Dora backpack that passed a federal test for toxic chemicals, but failed stricter standards used by some states.

"This law would require a danger label in the states of Washington and California.  Ohio, unfortunately doesn't have this stricter standard and so you're still going to find this on our shelves,” added Woodruff.

And they also say if a toy seems too loud for you, it's probably too loud for your child.

One they found tested as high as 92 decibels at one inch, but 85 decibels is the maximum allowed for that type of toy.

Toys may be safer than ever, but parents still need to be vigilant.

(see link for video clip)

Support Us


Learn More
