Safe Toys - Natural and Lead Free toys

Happy Teething!

Most parents are concerned about what food goes into their child’s mouth, the same concern should go for teething toys. Here is a great crawl teething toy from www.littletreehouse.ca that is made completely from Skal & Agreco organic cotton canvas, which is filled with organic cotton. It is chemical free and has low-impact dyes. Another plus is how easy it is for your baby to grasp it and gnaw it, which makes the whole teething process a bit easier.

Cute Organic Cotton Onesies on Sale!

As we all know, babies have very sensitive skin. To prevent nasty allergies, you should aim for garments with the highest percentage of natural fibres, and there is no better material than organic cotton. Speesees of San Francisco have designed these very cute and soft onesies that are made of Skal & Agreco certified organic cotton, which is chemical free and has low-impact dyes. Littletreehouse.ca have them in stock and what is even better, is they on sale today! For example, this cute baby blue onesie with a picture of a pup came down from 23.95CAD to 19.95CAD!

A Puzzle that Brightens up the Room

As mentioned in a previous post, non-toxic puzzles are fantastic for keeping boredom out of bay in a rainy day. And it doesn’t hurt that it is cute to look at too. This 3pc Dairy Cow from ImagiPLAY puzzle is designed to stand up so it can be an ornament when it is not being used. The puzzle is hand-crafted & hand painted, and the materials used are harmless: preservative-free rubberwood, non-toxic water-based paint and/or lacquer. Though even your smallest ones can figure this puzzle out, it is not suitable for children under 3 years. You can get it from www.planethappytoys.com at the price of $9.95.

Eco & Child-friendly Beach family time

This Sansac from Mesko will leave your conscience guilt-free when you relax with your family at the beach. It is eco-friendly and is made from 100% cotton canvas and even comes with a sustainably harvested bamboo shovel and 4 non-toxic fabric color markers, so your kids can customize the bag. It is in a good size of 8” by 5” and is foldable too!

My Baby Brand Soothers Recalled

Health Canada issued a recall today (reported first here) for approximately 10,000 MyBaby Brand soothers sold through Everything For A Dollar Stores across Canada.

“Testing by Health Canada of the various pacifier guard colours available has identified that the pacifiers with orange guards were found to have excessive levels of lead.”

Visit the Health Canada Product Recall Site.

Green Puzzles

One entertaining way to pass those rainy days is to give your kids some puzzles.  Non toxic puzzles are the right choice to avoid any plastic leeching chemicals.

Ride a ladybug - wooden toy made from wood no PVC

Here’s a great little toy made from sustainable plantation wood. This toy is entirely non-toxic and contains no PVC Kids ride on top of the bug and crash into your furniture.
Buy the Wheely Bug - Large - Bee ($59.95)

Likeabike - Green Bike for Kids

This hot little kids bike won the prestigious Spiel Gut (German for Good Toy) award. The bike is make of birch plywood, stainless steel, rubber and felt. In other words, less harsh chemicals for your little ones to ingest. Weighing in at 8 lbs it is perfect for you 2 to 5 year old to ram into your household furniture.
Likeabike - USA

Eco-Friendly Fun - 4 ways to Identify Green Kids Toys

Providing your children with fun and educational toys is part of the fun of being a parent and increasingly parents are wondering how they can also ensure these toys are eco-friendly. When choosing a toy, ask yourself the following 4 questions to help rank the green-ness of the toy:

1) What Materials are the toys made of?
Identifying what is classified as a ‘green toy’ starts with the materials used to create that toy. Choose toys which are made with natural or easily recyclable materials. Choose toys made with:

• Leather
• Wood
• Organic cotton
• Metal (aluminum is easily recycled)
• Fabric

Avoid toys made with plastic as plastic is a non biodegradable oil based product.

2) What country are the toys made in?
Surprisingly the location where the toy is manufactured has a large impact on its ‘greenness’ . Most toys these days are produced in China and as a result incur an enormous environmental ‘carbon footprint’ due to the distances travelled. A Toys ‘Carbon Footprint’ increases every mile that toy has to be transported.

3) Will this toy break in the first 10 minutes?
Well made toys are inherently green because they can be passed down and are not designed to be used for a week before they break. Select toys that are robust, made with quality materials and designed to stand the test of time.

4) Can the toy eventually be recycled?
All toys will eventually find their way to the landfill unless their components can be recycled. Some toys are manufactured in a way that allows for their parts to be easily disassembled.

How to identify Lead Paint

Lead Paint is used in military and industrial settings because it helps speed drying, increase durability and resists moisture which causes corrosion (wikipedia). Recently toys manufactured in China have been found to have used lead paint. Lead is especially damaging to children under age six whose bodies are still developing. Lead causes nervous system damage, hearing loss, stunted growth, reduced IQ, and delayed development. It can cause kidney damage and affects every organ system of the body.

Unfortunately there is no easy way to tell if your child’s toys contain lead. You may purchase a Lead Test Kit but there is no conclusive evidence these self test kits are accurate.