Your Baby is Entitled to Play With Safe Toys…
Toys and play, babies play with toys,safe toys,choosing safe toys
Your baby or toddler does not ask for much—just food at the right time,
adequate sleep, and some entertainment! The least you can do therefore,
as a parent, is to ensure that his or her playthings are absolutely safe!
It does not help that manufacturers are in fierce competition with each
other to produce more and more exciting toys for all ages concerned! And
advancing science and technology is also ready to oblige these creators
of playthings! In their desire to go to the top, they might ignore safety
conditions at times. It therefore becomes your bounden duty to examine
the products thoroughly before actually purchasing them. Even if someone
is giving you a used toy or you have just borrowed it for the time being,
please check it out before handing it to your child.
Here’s what you keep a watch out for—
(1) Most manufacturers print necessary safety warnings on the packages
containing toys. Especially, if there are small parts that can injure
or choke your child. Only if you are a careful and watchful parent, go
in for such toys.
(2) However attractive it may look, do avoid toys that display buttons,
eyes, nose, and wheels that can be pulled loose easily. Your child will
immediately stuff them into his or her mouth!
(3) If these broken parts get stuck in your child’s throat, he or she
can choke to death. They cannot be swallowed either.
(4) There are plenty of unbreakable toys available; go for them.
(5) Sharp-edged toys are a big no-no! Your child will injure himself/herself.
(6) Like animals, your toddler also might feel that chewing strengthens
his/her teeth. Can the toy withstand chewing, or will small pieces come
away?
(7) If it is possible to avoid toys with strings, please do so. In case
you are forced to go in for them, see that the strings are no longer than
18 centimeters or 7 inches.
(8) Children tend to have tender fingers; their toys should not pinch
them!
(9) Has any toy been recalled by the CPSC or Consumer Product Safety
Commission? No sense in buying this plaything, then.
(10) Painted playthings that have been manufactured before 1978 are not
completely safe—the paint may contain lead.
(11) Children adore balloons, but it is advisable to defer giving any
to a child below the age of eight. Imagine the risk that you pose to your
infant if you allow him/her to blow up the balloon or chew on it! Your
toddler can just inhale it and choke! Even inflated balloons can burst
suddenly and enter the child’s throat.
(12) Other things to avoid include latex gloves, and vending machine toys
that contain small parts.
(13) Carnivals, Fairs and Vending Machines offer toys for free or sell
them. No one is going to check these pieces for sharp edges or loose parts—it
is your job. There are no safety regulations laid down for playthings
being sold at such places.
(14) Similarly, home-made toys or hand-me-downs have never been tested
for safety. So think twice before you blindly hand them over to your infant.
