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NEWS > 2006
In addition to providing information pertaining to our organization, KID
provides brief updates on current children's product safety information and
events.
Contents of this Issue:
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2006 December email alert
Mattel, along with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission voluntarily
recalled 4.4 million Polly Pocket play sets due to small magnetic parts that can fall out undetected. The tiny magnets in these toys can
fall out and be ingested. When more than one is swallowed, they can attract, causing intestinal perforation, infection, and potentially fatal
injuries. There have been 170 reports of magnets coming out of the Polly Pocket toys and three serious injuries.
Thanksgiving marked the one year anniversary of the death of Kenny Sweet who died in
2005 after swallowing two magnets that came loose from a Magnetix building set. Some Magnetix sets were
recalled after Kenny's death, but the toy still remains in stores. The company has
added a warning label and made some manufacturing changes.
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2006 October email alert
Playskool, in conjunction with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission,
voluntarily recalled
250,000 of its Team Talkin' Tool Benches after the choking deaths of two
toddlers. The plastic nails sold with the benches became forcefully lodged in
their throats.
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2006 September email alert
A Committee of the American Academy of Pediatricians has released a report that
urges parents to avoid putting children in shopping carts until news standards
are in place to reduce the likelihood to tipovers and falls.
Unstable designs and a high center of gravity add to the number of falls and
tip-overs. AAP recommends parents either avoid putting a child in the
cart or use one with the child closer to the ground, such as those shaped like
cars or trucks. Other alternatives for parents as they shop
include:
- have another adult accompany you to the store to watch the child,
- put the child in a stroller or wagon,
- shop at stores that have supervised play areas for children
- or have the child walk alongside you.
If there is no alternative to a cart, never allow a child to stand in the cart
or ride anywhere on the cart but in the seat with a safety belt. The AAP
report showed that when store greeters remind parents to use the safety belt,
most do. Click
here for the AAP Parent Page on Shopping Carts.
The AAP points to the need for stronger safety standards for carts to prevent injuries.
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2006 July email alert
Hal Stratton announced his
resignation as of July 15, 2006, just months before his term expires in
October. Vice-Chairman Nancy Nord
will assume the Chair's responsibilities on an interim basis. If she is
appointed as Chairman as expected, her position must be filled by January 15,
2007 to allow CPSC to continue to take action as a Commission.
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2006 March email alert
The public health agency of Seattle
and King County, Washington, along with Children's Hospital and Regional
Medical Center issued a warning
after a second child was hospitalized there after ingesting tiny magnets from a
popular toy building set, Magnetix. A child died last year when the magnets
connected and obstructed his intestines. TV station KOMO in Seattle also
reported on a third child who had emergency surgery last year to remove
the toy's tiny, but powerful, magnets from his intestines. CPSC is
investigating the toy. In the meantime, because the small magnets can come
loose from their plastic casing and lie unnoticed by adults, KID would urge the
toy not be used in any households with young children who still mouth objects,
even if the toy is intended for an older sibling.
Update!
The CPSC has recalled
3.8 million Magnetix toy sets. In addition to the death, CPSC reports 34
incidents including four serious injuries involving surgery. Toys can be
returned to Rose Art for a replacement product.
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March 2006
There were 123 children's products recalled in 2005, according to KID's recent
report,
Dangers at Play: Children's Product Recalls in 2005. A
record number of cribs were recalled, including the Simplicy Aspen 3 in 1 Crib,
sold under the Graco logo, that led to the death of a 19-month-old Oregon baby
this January. Read more.
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2006 January Email Alert
The Children's Product Safety Act, law in seven states, has now been introduced
in Wisconsin and Colorado as well.
Senator Julie Lassa has introduced
SB 454 in Wisconsin and it has been assigned to the House Committee on
Job Creation, Economic Development and Consumer Affairs. It has not yet been
scheduled for a committee hearing. If you live in Wisconsin, ask Committee
Chair Theodore Kanavas that
this important bill be heard this year in Wisconsin. In March 2003, a Wisconsin
child died in a recalled portable crib.
In Colorado, Representative Gwyn Green has introduced
HB 1126 which has been assigned to the
House Health and Human Services Committee and will be heard in early
February. KID's co-founder, Linda Ginzel, will be testifying on the bill.
If you live in either of these states,
ask your state legislators to support this important legislation.
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