December 5, 2023
The holidays are synonymous with giving. Who doesn’t love giving—or getting—a little something special?
In our two-part series, Naughty vs. Nice, we’ll take a look at what not to buy, as well as a list of safe, healthy and thoughtful gifts for the holidays.
This week, we present the “naughty” list: glass candles that could shatter and cause serious burns; toys that pose choking hazards; jewelry with toxic levels of lead.
If those sound like holiday nightmares that couldn’t possibly be sold in stores, think again. The products all appear on a running list of hundreds of recalls each year from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
The commission is charged with protecting the American public from unreasonable risk of injury or death associated with the use of thousands of types of consumer products. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product-related incidents cost the nation more than $1 trillion annually. In addition to announcing product recalls, the CPSC has a searchable online database of consumer items that have been recalled due to safety hazards.
Before you give, consider scanning the CPSC website for these items.
Toys
It’s not unusual to see major manufacturers recall toys for safety issues, and even innocent-sounding stocking stuffers can be stocking shockers.
In November, Fisher-Price announced a recall of about 21,000 units of their popular Thomas and Friends toys because a small magnet “can detach or become loose, posing choking and magnet ingestion hazards,” according to the CPSC.
Choking is a big hazard, but there are other dangers, too: Over the summer, toy manufacturer Zuru recalled 7.5 million Baby Shark bath toys. “When using the recalled bath toys, particularly in a bathtub or wading pool, a child can slip and fall or sit onto the hard plastic top fin of the shark, posing risks of impalement, lacerations and punctures.”
Consumers should not only “think safety” about what they buy for children but should also be vigilant about where gifts are purchased, especially online.
Candles
Each year, the CPSC recalls dozens of candles that pose special dangers. The popular brand Magnolia Market recently recalled its 3-wick glass candles due to fire and laceration hazards. The recalled candles were manufactured with the incorrect wax, which can cause excessive flames on the wicks and cause the glass candle containers to break.
Appliances
Even everyday kitchen and household gadgets can be tricky. For example, Best Buy recently recalled its Insignia pressure cookers due to burn hazards. The pressure cooker has incorrect volume markings on the inner pot. “This can cause consumers to overfill the pot and hot food and liquids to be ejected when the pressure cooker is vented using the quick release method or opened while its contents are pressurized, posing a burn hazard to consumers,” according to the CPSC.
As you make your shopping list, putting safety first can help ensure a happy holiday. It’s easy to double-check your gift list with the CPSC to make sure no recalled items end up under the tree.
Protip: The Mayo Clinic recommends avoiding all toys small enough for kids to inhale or put in noses, mouths, or ears. Since young children do put things in their mouths, look for age-appropriate toys that have toxic-free certifications to reduce risk.
Thank you