Safe toy buying tips for the season

The holiday season upon us, and it's time to buy presents for families and friends. While we do that, we should take a few extra steps to be sure that the toys that we're giving to our children are as safe and non-toxic as possible.

This holiday, here are our top toy buying tips for keeping children safe.

1. Avoid inexpensive children's jewelry unless you trust the manufacturer or source.

This year, we have seen several recalls of cheap children's jewelry due to high levels of cadmium. Cadmium is an extremely toxic chemical that builds up in our systems and can have long-term adverse consequences.

2. When choosing flexible or soft plastic toys, find ones that are marked PVC, phthalate and lead-free.

PVC is also known as vinyl, and it is ubiquitous in children's products. It contains chemical additives including phthalates, lead and cadmium which are chemicals that are harmful to children even at low levels. When buying toys that could go in children's mouths, be especially diligent.

The Center for Health, Environment & Justice recently reported that Toys R Us, despite promises to reduce toxic chemicals in toys, continues to sell products made out of PVC. For non-toxic toy alternatives, try sites like The Soft Landing, which is committed to selling non-toxic products.

3. Check out the Healthy Stuff Toy Guide to find toxics information about popular children's products.

For several years, Healthy Stuff has been testing consumer products for chemicals which can harm children such as lead, chlorine, cadmium, arsenic, mercury and bromine. This guide has successfully guided parents and gift-buyers away from harmful products toward safer ones.

4. Bookmark US PIRG's mobile site on your phone so that you can check out toys while you're shopping.

US PIRG just released their 25th Annual Toy Safety Report which provides safety guidelines for consumers when purchasing toys. Their findings concluded that there is still lead in toys despite its being outlawed, that phthalates are being found in toys that exceed acceptable limits, and that many toys are choking hazards.