TODAY’S TIP

Safety for Junior Cyclists

A wrong-size bicycle may cause your child to lose control and be injured. To keep your child safe, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends the following:

* Do not push your child to ride a two-wheeled bike until he or she is ready, at about age 5 or 6. Consider the child’s coordination and desire to learn to ride. Stick with coaster brakes until your child is older and more experi-

enced.

* Take your child with you when you shop for the bike so that he or she can try it out. The value of a properly fitting bike far outweighs the value of sur-

prising your child with a new bike.

* Buy a bike that is the right size, not one your child has to “grow into.” Oversized bikes are especially dangerous.

How to test any style of bike for proper fit:

* Sitting on the seat with hands on the handlebar, your child must be able to place the balls of both feet on the ground.

* Straddling the center bar, your child should be able to keep both feet flat on the ground with about a 1-inch clearance between the crotch and the bar.

* When buying a bike with hand brakes for an older child, make sure the child can comfort-

ably grasp the brakes and apply sufficient pressure to stop.

* Consider a helmet standard equipment. When buying your child’s first bike, also be sure to purchase a helmet.

Source: American Academy of Pediatrics

Cap guns

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends that parents warn children not to put ring caps, paper roll caps or strip caps for toy guns in their pockets because friction can ignite the caps and cause burns.

* Toy caps contain a small amount of a pyro-

technic material that ignites when struck and creates a loud noise accom-

panied by sparks.

* Officials urge parents to explain the hazards of ignition of toy caps to children.

* Caps may also pose a noise hazard. A current federal regulation limits the decibel level of caps to no more than 158 decibels.

* The Consumer Product Safety Commission can provide more information about child consumer safety. To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury and for information on CPSC’s fax-on-

demand service, call CPSC’s hotline at (800) 638-2772 or CPSC’s teletype-

writer at (800) 638-8270. To order a press release through fax-on-

demand, call (301) 504-0051 from the handset of your fax machine and enter the release number. Consumers can obtain information at CPSC’s Web site at https://www.cpsc.gov. Consumers can report product hazards to info@cpsc.gov.

Source: CPSC