Lead Toy Recalls

Hi V., I want to commend you for keeping going after cancer and taking care of your little ones. What kind of cancer did you survive from?

I am just as terrified about the toys as well. I try to read the box and see where it is made and jsut don't buy it. I also do not go to Walmart any more. I do not beleive in their motto of 'putting more money in their pockets' at our expense and lower grade things. Anyway, enough potty mouth.

I wish I could help you more. I would love to talk with you further about how you survived and what you think caused it.

Sincerely,
K.

Even thought we haven't had any recalled stuff in our house for lead, I'm seriously considering that my kids will only be getting clothes for Christmas this year!!! I'm also very close to not buying anything that comes out of China right now too. Heck, just yesterday I was sitting out front and I saw one of the little yard stakes for Halloween and the fact that it is painted. I wondered, hum, where is it made so I got up and looked-China!! Then I thougth to myself (I just bought them this year) if I was going to put them in the Halloween box with the rest of the stuff or toss them in the trash!

If you aren't already, you can get all the recalls sent to your email and search reacalls at www.cpsc.gov. Also, a friend of mine did some searching and found some websites that sell toys that are made in the USA!! If anyone would like the sites, let me know and I'll get them too you.

I just try not to panic too much about it. My mom told me a long time ago that when I was very little I used to chew on the window siles and they had paint on them (probably lead paint-it was in the 70's). And all of that was before issues about lead paint really started surfacing and I'm normal (even though my hubby may argue that fact! hehe) and I've had two healthy kiddos with no problems.

Lead in toys is a HUGE concern for me. Christmas this year is going to take a LOT of research for me before I buy a single toy for my son or any of my nephews or neices. Here is a great website http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/10/ask_treehugger_20...

Someone recommeneded buying the test kits but they don't work. The US EPA has a brouchre about testing your home (and other things) for lead. http://www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/leadtest.pdf

4 of my sons toys have been recalled. One of the sites I visit daily is taking a stand against unsafe toys. Here is a copy of what they are trying to do.

"Those of you who have been regular readers of our blog are surely aware with the problem of lead toys.

For those unaware as to why we at MomSquawk are so concerned: lead poisoning can cause serious and lasting damage to the brain and nervous system, including seizures, coma, and even death.

And when innocent play has become hazardous, something is seriously wrong.

The scariest part about all of these recent recalls is that these are just the unsafe toys that have actually been caught. The dangerous manufacturing processes producing these toys aren’t confined to small companies. As you’ve read here, even some of the country’s largest toy manufacturers have traded child safety for profits.

Something needs to be done. We are going to try and do our part, but we need your help.

Please sign MomSquawk’s open letter to toy company executives, Congress and the Consumer Product Safety Commission to let them know that we will no longer tolerate such needless dangers to our children’s safety. And please help us spread the word about this issue so important to the well being of our children. A few seconds of your time in sending an email to friends and family asking them to also sign the letter can make the difference in keeping children safe. http://www.momsquawk.com/safetoypetition/

For questions about this initiative or how you can get involved, please email ____@____.com."

I just heard that there is a kit that you can buy at Lowes or Home Depot that allows you to test the lead on products. I am not sure how much it costs and how many uses you get out of it but I was going to look into it this weekend.

I've been leery of this "lead paint on toys" recall too. When my mother-in-law went shopping for my little girl's b-day recently, she went to Wal-mart. Luckily, they have a list of toys that have been recalled and they told her as the recalls are updated, they would update as well. Needless to say, my daughter and my two others got a lot of reading materials and clothes. My suggestion is that when you go to buy, especially if you're at Wal-Mart, to check that list. Also, we've been buying a lot of educational related toys. I'm a Language Arts teacher, so I feel it's never too soon to read and give your children stuff like that. This is what my husband and I plan to do for Christmas as well. Thankfully, there are some toys that have been made elsewhere like Mexico, so I would try to buy things from other countries. Hope that helps.

I'm with you on this one. I researched and found German, French, Italian and very few U.S. toymakers that I need to place an order in for Christmas. I have spent some time in Germany/France too, and visited their toystores (awesome) and what I have seen is of the best quality, made to last.
In fact, my sisters came to visit and were with my oldest at a store, about to buy her a toy, and she said "You can't get me this, it was made in China!"
One of my girls is less than a year old, so I am freaking out about the plastic too!! I found that Thermos brand makes sippy cups and trainer cups in the U.S. and that they are PBA free (like the toys, they are more pricey. . .worth it in my opinion, I'll just buy less and wash more often AND have fewer toys cluttering up the house and as a bonus I KNOW there will be much less toys breaking and posing a hazard that way).

am planning on my my 2 boys a swing set...its one that has a soccer goal a basket ball goal,slide 4 different swings, and a climbing thing...gonna run us about 400 dollars...anyone know if there is a concern of recall on any playsets like this?

NO-you are not the only mom freaking out!! It's not just lead we have to worry about, it's also about pieces of toys breaking off and being ingested or choked on. Impalement injuries, lacerations, burns, caused by toys. I think as consumers we have to make wise choices in all toy purchases or any purchases, and still things can happen, but we still can be informed as much as possible when making purchases or before we make a purchase. Check out this web-site and in their search engine type in "toy hazard recalls" and look at what all comes up-you will be amazed!! They also have other things besides toys on this site. http://www.cpsc.gov/index.html

I think the recent recalls and the above web-site I visited have helped me to be more aware of the toys I purchase for my children. You will find yourself making a more informed choice when choosing things for your children, and being informed will help you make better choices.

Hope this helps;)
G.

I'm with you on this one. I have no idea what to buy my infant son for Christmas b/c I'm worried about harming him. I have heard that Toys R Us carries lead testing kits for toys, so you may want to check that out. I've been researching toy companys that sell American made toys too. Be careful there too though. I bought a Melissa & Doug Pound A Peg thinking it would be ok b/c it's wooden, well it was made in China too!

Our world just keeps getting scarier and scarier.

Good luck.