With the holiday shopping season fast approaching, a local consumer safety group has issued its annual "Ten Worst Toys'' list, and demonstrated why some toys such as the “Power Rangers Super Ninja Steel Superstar Blade” and “Pull Along Dog” should not be in the hands of children.
W-A-T-C-H (which stands for World Against Toys Causing Harm) says toy-related injuries send hundreds of thousands of children to emergency rooms every year.
The group wants to alert parents to toys it considers unsafe and today at Franciscan Children's Hospital, officials unveiled their list.
Displaying the toys on this year's list, WATCH director James Swartz pointed out features like long strings and small parts saying, “these are accessories that can be removed and once removed present a choking hazard.”
Swartz says since the 1980s, the group has issued a list of toy nominees that is meant to be representative of all hazardous toys. Swartz says they do it, “to provide examples of types of hazards whether it be small parts, strangulation hazards, projectile hazards and others just as a reminder that there are still concerns out there.
This year’s report focuses on toys with small parts, and with inconsistent and inadequate warnings.
According to the latest statistics from the Consumer Product Safety Commission, there were an estimated 240,000 toy-related injuries in the U.S. in 2016, and a reported 35 children died from toy-related incidents between 2014 and 2016
WATCH President Joan Siff says the same safety hazards appear year after year, “dangerous toys, toys that are improperly designed manufactured or marketed, continue to pollute toy store shelves and e-tailing sites.”
Siff says toy recalls are a further reminder that not all toys are safe.
The Toy Association, a trade association representing toy makers says many of the group’s claims are unfounded and untested.
