December 2020: Safe Toys & Gifts
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One of the most exciting traditions of the winter holidays is giving gifts, and everyone loves seeing a child’s eyes light up when they receive the perfect gift. However, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reported that over 220,000 toy-related injuries were treated in emergency departments in 2019 — due to ingestions, broken bones, cuts, and more. Share these toy shopping tips with the families you serve to keep this year's holiday celebrations safer:
Avoid magnet sets. High-powered magnets (or rare earth magnets) can cause life-threatening injuries if swallowed. When a child swallows two or more high-powered magnets or one magnet and a metal object, they can attract each other through layers of tissue, causing severe damage. Learn more about high-powered magnets in our toolkit.
Make sure button batteries are secure. Found in many toys, “button” batteries are small, coin-sized batteries that can cause serious injury, including death, in as little as 2 hours. Make sure that toys that contain button batteries have a secure battery compartment that requires a tool (like a screwdriver) to open.
Buy a helmet. Thinking of buying a bicycle, skateboard, or scooter? Please buy a helmet to go with it. All ride-on toys should be purchased with the proper safety equipment, like helmets and knee/elbow pads.
Read the label. Always read the labels on the packaging to make sure the toy is age-appropriate and nontoxic, and before gifting, read the instructions so that you can show the child how to use the toy properly.
Listen for loud noise. Not only can loud noises be frightening to a child, they can permanently damage a child’s hearing. If the toy is too loud for you, it is too loud for a child. Before gifting, remove the batteries or reconsider the toy altogether.
New GIF: Holiday Safety Tips
We are excited to share our new Holiday Safety Tips GIF! Click on the link below to download and share.
Take Action
Every month, we are promoting a new action that each family can take to keep their children safer while social distancing. This month, we want every family to install carbon monoxide alarms on every level of their home and outside of each separate sleeping area. The risk of carbon monoxide poisoning increases during the winter, and carbon monoxide alarms are the only way to know if there are dangerous levels of carbon monoxide in the home.
Follow along every month for a new action, and share with us how you're preventing child injury in your home!
Coming Up
On Our Twitter Calendar
Nov. 30 - Dec. 6: Holiday Decoration Safety
Dec. 7 - 13: Safe Toys and Gifts Month
Dec. 14 - 20: Sledding Safety
Dec. 21 - 27: Winter Travel
Dec. 28 - 31: Recap Major Safety Stories of 2020
Events
Are you planning to apply to the Safe Routes to Parks Activating Communities program? Do you have questions? Join the Safe Routes Partnership for an in-depth information session on December 3, 2020 from 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm EST. The Healthy Parks and Places Manager will review eligibility requirements, what is included in the grant program, and what will be expected from the organizations that are awarded. There will also be time to answer your specific questions that go beyond the application FAQs. Register for the session.
Attend the webinar “Alcohol Use and Partner Violence Among Adolescents and Emerging Adults,” hosted by the Maryland Department of Health Center for Injury & Sexual Assault Prevention and the Great Lakes & Mid-Atlantic Violence and Injury Prevention Regional Network. The webinar is taking place on December 3, 2020 from 3pm - 4pm EST. To RSVP and get instructions to join the webinar, click here.
Attend the upcoming webinar "On the Road to Zero: Child Passenger Safety" hosted by the National Safety Council on Tuesday, December 8th, 2020 at 2pm EST. This webinar will explore child passenger safety, including current trainings, trends and research around the topic. Attendees of this webinar will learn about opportunities to improve child passenger safety both systematically and in their own communities. Register here.
Attend the upcoming Midwest Injury Prevention Alliance (MIPA) Virtual Summit being help virtually on December 9th, 2020, from 8:00 am - 12:45 pm CST. This year’s theme—Keeping a 20/20 Focus During Challenging Times—will cover important topics that will inspire, instruct and illustrate the power of partnerships, the passion of programs, and the practice of policy in changing the landscape of injury and violence in each of our states. Register for free here.