Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, November 28, 1993                   TAG: 9311240290
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: F-2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: BY SONIA REYES NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

. . . AND SOME OF THE MOST HAZARDOUS

That's the word from New York City's Consumer Affairs office and the U.S.\ Public Interest Research Group, a consumer advocacy group that last released\ its list of 25 potentially hazardous toys that could choke or deafen tots\ under 3.

It's a scenario played over and over: a toddler clutches a toy and puts it\ in his mouth. Choking on small toy parts such as balls, beads and balloons is\ the leading cause of toy-related deaths, according to 1993 U.S. PIRG\ statistics. Of the 30 toy-related deaths across the nation in the past 21\ months, 14 were due to choking, the group said.

"It's too easy for these cute toys to turn into choking hazards," said Acting Consumer Affairs Commissioner Richard Schrader, who noted that 14 of the toys violated federal Consumer Product Safety Commission regulations forbidding manufacturers from marketing toys with small parts to children under 3.

With "small" defined as fitting into a choke-testing tube - the federal standard for small parts - Schrader demonstrated how seemingly harmless toys like Puppy Precious, a plush dog that retails from $9.99 to $17.99 and is made in China, can be harmful when its tiny dog tag is pulled off its collar.

Though not violating regulations, other toys like Fisher-Price's old version of Little People Farm Fun ($6.47) show the need for tougher regulations: Six children choked on this small version of the toy, prior to a redesign in 1990. But Schrader said the old version of the toy can still be found in stores. Other toys with dangerous parts, PIRG said, include the Aladdin Doll on a Skateboard (imported, $3.99, its wheels easily come off); the 14-inch Sweet Joyce doll (imported, $3.99, small milk bottle just fits into choke tube, and Tiffany Cats (imported, $9.99-$15.99, a metal bell on collar detaches easily).

However, relief is on the way, said Ed Mierzwinski, PIRG's consumer program director.

The federal government is expected to pass legislation in January requiring warning labels on toys containing small parts that may pose choking hazards to children under 3, he noted.