The Issues with Plastic and Battery-Powered Toys

Christmas is coming, and many people are tempted to buy plastic, battery-operated toys for their children or grandchildren. After all, plastic is durable, safe, and colorful, right? And battery-operated toys with all their lights, noises and movement capture children’s attention, don’t they? Not quite. Let’s take a look at some of the potential – and established – hazards of plastic and/or battery-operated toys, and explore some of the alternatives.

Just What Is Meant by “Cost”?

Proponents of plastic toys often argue that they are so much more affordable. Such toys may cost fewer dollars at the checkout counter, but what about the less-visible cost to our health and environment? In a culture of immediacy, we tend to see anything that looks good and costs less as a good deal and the right choice. But it’s important to stop and think for a moment about the long-reaching effects of our consumer decisions. Here are some ways that plastic toys ultimately cost more.

* Recycling costs
The recycling of plastics is difficult, complicated, and expensive, and only some plastics are recyclable. Some plastics delivered to recycling centers are shipped to other countries to burn as fuel. Air pollution, anyone?

* Health costs
We all know that health care costs are astronomical these days, and the last thing we need are environment-induced illnesses to burden the health care system further. The plastics used in children’s toys can contain chemicals such as phthalates, dioxin, and polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which have been linked to a host of health problems from cancer to reproductive disorders. With breast cancer at near epidemic proportions, do plastics really “cost less”?

* Environmental costs
Batteries and plastics both have negative effects on the environment. Tons of batteries are thrown into landfills each year, where they release toxic metals into the environment (such as lead and mercury). And don’t think that most people recycle their children’s plastic toys; for one thing, many of them, such as PVC or vinyl, cannot be recycled. Many parents just throw away toys as they break or their children outgrow them. Then the dangerous plastics end up in landfills as well, leaching toxic chemicals into the environment.

What Are Some Good Alternatives to Plastic Toys?

* Wooden toys are becoming more widely available, and they are brightly colored and durable. You might steer clear of painted wood products made in China, not only due to the possibility of lead in the paint but also to encourage local toy makers.

* Safe plastics do exist, and are worth looking into. Look for numbers 1, 2, 4 and 5 on the universal recycling symbol printed on plastics. Items with these numbers are made with less/fewer toxic chemicals.

* Wind-up or kid-powered toys are an old-fashioned and delightful way to entertain the children in your life. Some of the toys that fit this description are old-fashioned metal wind-ups and metal, foot-pedal cars.

* Nature provides all kinds of toys in the form of sticks, rocks, leaves, and so forth. Spend some time outside and enjoy the free, natural toys all around you.

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Hip Craft Projects for Your Teenage Daughter

Teenage girls love to express themselves through the clothing and accessories they wear. And many of them also enjoy decorating their rooms. So if you want to get your teenage daughter interested in crafting, all it usually takes is a project that fits in with those activities.

Creating hip clothing, accessories and room d?cor is a hobby for many teenagers. And it’s one that they can participate in no matter what their skill level. Here are some projects your teenage daughter will find irresistible.

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Ways to Teach Your Kids about Recycling

Children are more likely to participate in recycling now and in the future if they understand its implications, and if it is part of their daily life. Learning how to reuse is a valuable life skill, and opens the door for a lifetime of reduced waste and innovation. It also helps to make it fun!

Here are some ideas you can implement to teach your children about recycling – how to do it, why it’s important, and how they can help.

1. Make it a game

Children enjoy tossing recyclables into the bins in your home. Try mounting your bins to the wall, or line them up where their tops are open. Have children toss in unbreakable recyclables such as cardboard or plastic from progressively farther away. Or you can lay out all the recycling and see who can sort and put the items in the right bin first.

If you have a lot of light-weight items such as cereal and tissue boxes or yogurt tubs, see how high your child can stack them before knocking the stack into the bin.

2. Arts, crafts, and other projects

Not all children enjoy crafts, but there is something for everyone in recycling creations. If your child is artistic and likes crafts, use recyclables to make artistic creations and gifts. Paint a glass or plastic bottle, for example, and use it as a vase; glue beads and other decorations to glass or plastic containers to make pencil holders, coasters (think plastic lids), or other items. Stiff paper and thin cardboard can be cut into squares and folded into little boxes.

If your child prefers engineering or machines, you can make gears by cutting up corrugated cardboard and mounting them to cardboard boxes with pins that allow the gears to turn.

3. Visit the recycling center

You can arrange ahead of time with those in charge of the center, or for a less in-depth visit, simply take your child with you when you deliver the recycling. Talk about how they take old items and make them into new ones. Point out items in the center’s bins that the child may recognize, and talk about how what we throw away and what we create are connected.

If you can get into the center, children can get a look at the machines and methods of actual recycling, and see what goes into it. It’s important that children do not think recycling is some kind of magic force! It takes real work and everyone’s participation.

4. Visit a landfill, dump, or tip

This can be rather unappetizing, but visuals really teach. Show your children the garbage, noting how high it is piled up and how much it smells. Explain that as it rots, it emits carbon dioxide into the air and that this is not good for us to breathe. Keep it simple, but be frank and realistic.

For more ideas, check the Environmental Protection Agency’s website, www.epa.gov/kids/. If our children are motivated to recycle, the planet’s future looks much brighter!

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