As you know, the CPSC has confirmed that the popular toy Zhu Zhu pets is safe. It is “not out of compliance with the antimony or other heavy metal limits.” My concern is, as a parent of an autistic child, I have been told that an item is safe for children, yet have found that it is not safe for my child.
A lot of our children are more sensitive to toxics than other children. They say that the amount of toxic metals contained in these toys are within government guidelines. My concern is that they do not say that these toys do not contain any of the toxics.
As a parent of an autistic child, this concerns me a lot. I do love these toys, and so do my children. However, I have to think about their health and safety. I contacted a representative of Zhu Zhu Pets via email. Here is a copy of what I asked and his reply. I contacted the CPSC and I have it and their reply copied below.
My email request:
I’ve been keeping track of what has been going on. I have that the CPSC has issue a statement that the toys are safe for normal play, although I don’t see their statement on their website yet. My question is whether or not they are safe for autistic children. Our children are not known for playing normally. Some can be violant with their toys, others tend to mouth them. Under these circumstances, does the company believe that our children are safe? Thank you.Tammy Lessick
Response received:
The CPSC confirmed that Zhu Zhu Pets meet their safety standards. You can see the article that was posted this morning in the Los Angeles Times: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-zhuzhu-pets8-2009dec08,0,7448175.story?track=rss. Cepia has also posted the results of the tests to the zhuzhupets.com web site if you’d like to take a look for yourself. – Company Representative
My email request:
Good afternoon. I am in need of follow-up information about the safety of the Zhu Zhu Pets. I have read that the CPSC has issued a statement that they are safe for normal play. My publiccation centers around autistic children. Our children are not known for playing with their toys normally. Many can be violent with their toys or mouth them. Many of our children also have weak immune systems and are more sensitive to metal toxins. My question is, are these toys, under these circumstances, safe for our autistic children?
Response received:
Tammy,
See our statement below re: Zhu Zhu Pets.
Thanks, Nychelle
“CPSC confirmed today that the popular Zhu Zhu toy is not out of compliance with the antimony or other heavy metal limits of the new U.S. mandatory toy standard. CPSC will continue to evaluate safety issues on toys as they arise.”Nychelle (Nikki) Fleming
Public Affairs Specialist
Office of Information & Public Affairs
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
The toys are safe. They are within the government’s guidelines. We are told the same thing about vaccines, yet for some of our children, vaccines were harmful. Did you notice that neither one actually answered my question? What do you think? Are Zhu Zhu pets safe for autistic children?
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