UW-Health wants people to consider safety when purchasing toys for children

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - UW-Health wants people to be careful when picking out toys for children over the holiday season.

Pediatrician Dr. Megan Yanny said people should check toy labels to find out what the recommended age range is for a child to safely use a toy that is properly vetted.

When buying toys, people should not purchase something that has small parts or batteries that young kids could swallow, choke on or ingest.

Dr. Yanny also said smart toys are increasing in popularity. These are robotic toys that can record children and use AI technology to react and speak back to them. While the new toys can be fun and futuristic, people should make sure whatever the smart toy records is not being put online or used elsewhere.

“The biggest thing would be knowing what’s going on with the information that’s being shared from the smart toy,” Dr. Yanny said. “Is everything being recorded? What can the company do with the information that they might be recording or documenting? Read all of the labels, the boxes, the inserts and all of the fine print for that kind of information.”

She also said these artificial intelligence toys could be categorized with screen time, something that isn’t always beneficial to a child’s brain development. It might be more beneficial to buy books, crafts and toys that boost creativity rather than time spent on a screen.

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