Considerations for Choosing Safe Children’s Toys
Choosing what’s best for your child will be your priority whether you are picking toys, food, clothing etc. When it comes to toys, there are so many choices that you can choose from and these usually come with age recommendations that will give you a helpful guide.
There are certain toys that are not recommended for the age of your child as the toy can pose a risk such as a choking hazard. Also, having this recommendation will give you an idea of whether a certain toy will be too difficult for the child. While a challenging toy will hold their attention, when the difficulty becomes too much, they will simply abandon the toy as it will no longer hold their attention. You need to choose a toy that is just complicated enough to hold your child’s attention. And you don’t need to strictly stick to age recommendations. If you see a toy that you think will be of interest to your child and it carries a higher age recommendation, give it the benefit of your doubt and see how your child receives it.
Safety is very important when it comes to selecting a toy.
If you are choosing a toy for a child under three years old, you need to be very careful that you don’t select something with small parts. These can be a choking danger. As children under three years old tend to put everything in their mouth, you need to avoid marbles, small balls, games with small items, small magnets or loose items. You can go through the range of toys that are available for that age range. You will generally be able to filter by age when you buy toys online. But even if a certain toy is considered to be safe for your child, make sure you go through the different parts of the toy to see if anything can be a risk. Young children tend to pull and twist toys so you need to select toys with strong construction that will not come apart. For example, if you are purchasing a soft toy, make sure there are no buttons or bows that can come apart if torn or twisted. The child can easily swallow these.
When choosing toys for children between the ages of three and five, you need to avoid toys that have sharp points or can break into sharp pieces. They will begin to experiment with art supplies at this age so you need to make sure you select materials that are manufactured to a high standard. There are certain designations you can look for when selecting a toy that will assure you that a toxicologist has reviewed the toy. Make sure you read the label and the description on the box so you can look for any information that has been provided as a caution. When you have children that are a few years apart, it can be a little difficult to make sure the older child’s toys are kept apart from the younger child. You have to teach your child how important it is to keep certain toys away from their brothers and sisters. Any toy that you buy or have been given as a gift should be inspected before you give it to the child so that you can spot any potential hazards whether it is peeling or chipped paint.