Garantisadong pambata safe toys for children

CEBU, Philippines - The Public Information and Health Education Service of the Department of Health-Central Visayas, through its Sentrong Sigla (Health ang una!) program, issued an advisory on choosing safe toys for children.

“Toys play a vital role as stimuli for the mental growth and development of children. But these can be harmful and can cause accidents when misused and unsuitable for their age,” the advisory read, mentioning the following tips to be aware as to what particular toys fit kids depending on their age:

·Characteristics of a good toy. Choose safe toys, educational, stimulating, attractive and beautiful in color and form; durable and affordable/indigenous. Safe means clean, non-toxic, non-flammable, large enough not to be swallowed, no small parts that could break or be chewed off; free from sharp points or cutting edges or splinters; no dangling strings or connective elastics; and does not shoot or throw out objects that can injure eyes.

·General guidelines in choosing toys for 0-5 years-old children. Before buying toys, examine the labels for age recommendation, indications that all materials are non-toxic and certification for electric and fire safety. However, age recommendation is not always a good factor to be considered because children may or may not be ready at the age the toy manufacturer thinks they should be. Select what suits the children’s abilities and interests and those that provide for their creativity and active input. Buy toys which are safe, educational, attractive, durable and economical.

·Suggested suitable toys (Birth to one year). Newborn babies love toys they can look at particularly those with faces and can hear pleasing sounds. Older babies are great explorer of texture, shape, size and especially taste. They clutch at things and put them in their mouth. They can play with rattles; large, brightly colored balls; unbreakable mirrors with steel borders especially made for babies; and washable stuffed dolls or animals with big, clearly outlined faces. However, never put a large stuffed toy in a baby’s crib because it could suffocate the baby or he may use it to climb out of the crib.

·Suggested suitable toys for toddlers (2-3 years). Toddlers are clumsy; they bang things vigorously, and want to be the “doer”; they find no contentment just by having things done for them. They like brightly colored toys that they can push and pull, pile up, dump out, dig with, carry around, match and tie together, mold and cuddle. They can be given large, smooth blocks with rounded corners, push-pull toys and wheeled animals with rounded handles, nests of objects which fit together, small tables and chairs, appropriate colored and illustrated books, wooden animals, dolls, sturdy kiddy cars, modeling clay, and rocking horses.

· Preschoolers (4-5 years). Preschoolers adore/imitate their toys and have the manual dexterity and imagination to play for hours. Their increased coordination, memory and concentration made it possible for them to play with a much wider range of toys. They love to play house, run about much, skip and dance, and interested in playing with other children. They can play with realistic-looking dolls, puppets, small wagons, push toys, building blocks, puzzles, magnetic board with shapes; arts and crafts materials including crayons, magic markers clay, chalk and chalkboard, scissors with round ends, non-toxic paste and glue; picture and color-matching games; dominoes, balls, kites and swing sets.

As for play things most frequently involved in serious injuries to children, Sentrong Sigla mentioned of toys which make use of projectiles (bows and arrows, slingshots, pea/pellet shooters, darts, air rifles and toy guns. Other toys that have potential for high-speed accidents include skateboards, roller skates, bikes and sleds. These are being discouraged despite legal manufacture, distribution and sale of these items in stores.

In addition, Sentrong Sigla reminds parents or guardians that “no toy can be considered truly safe for a particular child, unless he is mentally and physically capable of using it properly.”