As you head out to the malls and stores this Black Friday, take into account the new “Noisy Toy” research that came out from The Sight and Hearing Foundation. The group conducts the study annually to measure the newest toys of the holiday season to see just how loud they really are. This year’s top two offenders, Bell Riderz Block Blaster and cars Shake ’N Go Ramone, blared at 129.2 and 119.5 decibels (dB). According to National Institute of Occupational Health and Safety (NIOSH) standards, that level leads to a risk of hearing damage almost instantly…in fact, sounds greater than 85dB can be damaging. The louder the sound, the less time you need to be exposed for potential permanent damage.
Top 10 Loud Toys of 2010
- Bell Riderz Block Blaster by Bell Sports, Inc. (ages 4-8) 129.2dB
- Cars Shake ‘N Go Ramone by Mattel, Inc. (ages 3-7) 119.5dB
- Transformers Optimus Prime Cyber Swrd by Harsbro (4+) 110.1dB
- True Heroes Sonic Battle Blasters by Geoffrey, LLC (3+) 110dB
- CAT Mini Mover by Toy State Intl Ltd. (3+) 104.8dB
- Rocket Boost Iron Man 2 by Hasbro (3+) 103.2dB
- Road Rippers, Rush and Rescue Fire Truck by Toy State Intl Ltd. (3+) 101.6dB
- Interaction Morris by Learning Curve Brands (3+) 98.7dB
- Proto Bat-Bot Figure by Mattel, Inc. (4+) 98.6dB
- CAT Honk and Rumble Wheel by Toy State Intl Ltd (ages 2-5) 96.6dB
To protect a child’s hearing, the Sight & Hearing Association offers the following tips:
- Listen to a toy before you buy it. If it sounds loud to you, it’s too loud for your child.
- Report a loud toy. Call the Consumer Product Safety Commission at 800/638-2772 or the Sight & Hearing Association at 800/992-0424, or contact us by e-mail at ReportAToy@sightandhearing.org.
- Put masking or packing tape over the speaker on the toy. This will help reduce the volume.
- Buy toys with volume controls