Safe and Stress-Free Holidays

Safe and Stress-Free Holidays
Contributor: Susan Weissman

It’s okay, we know. The holidays aren’t easy. Festive? Sure. Warm and Fuzzy? Yep. Stressful? Utterly. Think about it – between Thanksgiving and New Years we feel pressured to purchase the “right” presents, to procure the requisite goodies (i.e. your class parent emails a request for two dozen cupcakes A.S.A.P), and to fancy up our homes before your children start fantasizing about putting hanging their stocking over at our neighbor’s twinkling hearth.

I figured that since son has life threatening food allergies, I had earned my parenting safety stripes. But after speaking about holiday safety hazards with Anthony Toderian, at CSA International, a leading testing, certification and anti-counterfeiting organization, I realized even the most cautious parents often silence their inner Smoky Bear. Luckily, it’s easy to avoid typical mishaps while proving to your children that you are, in fact, the greatest parent ever – if only for a few weeks. Try using these rules of thumb this holiday season:

If it seems too good to be true . . . it is. Did you just find the perfect DVD player for your teenager at half the cost? Are there misspelled graphics on the package holding the last “Hot Weels!” car on the shelf? Low prices, misspelled words, lack of a brand identifier and even a light or flimsy feel to a product can indicate counterfeit. It’s not worth buying. Counterfeit toys or electronics can give kids electrical shocks and expose children to cheap toxic “filler” materials. I follow the same “too good to be true” rule for my son’s food allergies. For example, if bake sale Oreos aren’t in the original packaging (think: cute little cellophane bags) I don’t buy them even if they are being sold for pennies. If I can’t confirm the ingredients from the label they aren’t safe for my son.

Kids appreciate simplicity as much as we do. Keep it mind when hauling boxes of tinsel and tangled light strings out of storage this year. I’ll never forget the weekend that I drove everyone in my family crazy trying to make egg-less French toast only to have the little guy turn to me and say, “Mommy, no offense but I really just like toast. Like, just toast.” According to the CAS international, each year, thousands of house fires occur during the holiday season and injure nearly 2,000 adults and children and cause over $990 million in damage. If you don’t have the time to thoroughly check last year’s lights for hazards like frayed cords or correct voltage, then you might want to consider an incandescent free holiday. Your kids might just think it’s cool to be “green” anyway.

Don’t re-make the wheel. There are resources available to help busy parents find out what’s safe for their children. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is a great place to start if you are unsure about a toy, game or tool. Their website www.cpsc.gov lists product recalls and much more. And if, like me, food allergens concerns you then go to http://www.foodallergies.orgwhere food recalls are constantly updated as well. Let the safety experts do their job so you can unwind and truly take pleasure in your holidays.