(CPSC: Washington DC) -- As the holidays approach and toy catalogs begin to arrive in the mail, toy shoppers can become overwhelmed with all the choices. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) wants parents and consumers to know that safeguards put in place in recent years are making a positive impact and helping to restore confidence in the safety of toys in the marketplace.

The new toy safeguards include: establishing the lowest lead content and lead paint limits in the world; setting limits on the use of certain phthalates (substances added to plastics to increase their flexibility, transparency, durability, and longevity); converting the voluntary toy standard into a mandatory standard; and working with Customs and Border Protection data systems to track shipments as they are in transit from other countries, thereby increasing our effectiveness in discovering dangerous products coming into U.S. ports.

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