Shoppers: Read This on Dangerous Toys
The Dora the Explorer guitar is too loud for children, a consumer group says. Photo by Joy Diaz, KUT News
The holiday shopping season is here. But a consumer advocacy group wants to make sure you don’t buy toys that could endanger the health of children.
One example is the Fisher‑Price Dora the Explorer Guitar pictured above, according to Ilya Slavinski with the Texas Public Interest Research Group.
“The National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders recommends that no toy should be above 85 decibels. And this Dora Guitar clocked in at 93 decibels,” Slavinski said. “It’s dangerous and can lead to hearing loss.”
Other dangers include toys with small magnets. Slavinski says there have been more than 1,700 emergency room visits in the U.S. between 2009 and 2011 from children swallowing magnets.
You can read their full report “Trouble in Toyland” online. They’ve also launched a mobile website you can access on your smartphone while you’re shopping.
