Parents want tougher measures on the contents of party bags after research found a third know of a child who has been injured by a cheap toy given out following a birthday
A poll of 1,240 parents revealed one in 20 have even seen their own child hurt by a toy, food item or other unsuitable gift left in a party bag.
As a result, nine in 10 support more stringent safety regulations on the items commonly put into the post-birthday packages.
The study was conducted by ChannelMum.com after Australian toddler Alby Fox Davis choked to death on a bouncy ball given out in the party bags at his fourth birthday party.
The most common problem caused by party bags is an allergic reaction to sweets or other foodstuffs included in the bags, with a third of those parents who saw a child hurt saying it was as a result of this.
GALLERY: Chocolate bars from the past we WISH would come back
CLOSER chocolate bars we miss
1 of 231) Cadbury Coconut Boost
The core centre made up of dessicated coconut combined with a normal Boost bar was just too good - why on EARTH was this masterpiece ever taken out of circulation?!
2 of 232) Dairy Milk Tiffin
After being off the shelves for years, Tiffin made its comeback in 2016. Hallelujah!
3 of 233) Mars Delight
That caramel and chocolate cream filling mixed with that wafer, was a pure delight. Sadly, we despite people's efforts, this Mars chocolate bar won't be returning anytime soon.
4 of 234) Cadbury Marble
Milk and white chocolate AND praline in one bar? Yup. Cadbury's really are one of the best at coming up with new recipes.
5 of 235) Cadbury Spira
Two fingers of Dairy Milk with chocolate spiralling around the outside... YUM.
6 of 236) Time Out
The Time Out was very slyly taken off the shelves - basically a chocolate wafer, but SO MUCH MORE. Thankfully, they still exist in shops as a single wafer.
7 of 237) Cadbury Snow Flake
The geniuses at Cadbury decided to merge their white Dream chocolate with the standard flake to create utter perfection in this little bar. But why, oh why, did they stop making them?!
8 of 238) Rowntree's Cabana
Coconut, caramel, cherries and chocolate – the ultimate tropical chocolate bar, right?
9 of 239) Trio
TRIO! TRIOOOO! I want Trio and I want one now!
10 of 2310) Cadbury Dream
Possibly one of the best additions to the Heroes tin at Christmas.
11 of 2311) Cadbury Fuse
Nuts, raisins, fudge and cereal pieces all in one chocolate bar?! It's years since we last saw a Fuse bar around. Sob.
12 of 2312) Terry's Pyramint
Basically, a pyramid version of an After Eight but with a slightly sloppier middle. We miss these!
13 of 2313) KitKat Senses
We can't for the life of us think why these went extinct. But they've been refashioned in a selection box, so that's something at least.
14 of 2314) Milkybar Choo
We're hoping this one will make a comeback. The strange combination of white chocolate and fudge worked surprisingly perfectly.
15 of 2315) Cadbury Taz Bar
When Taz became extinct, this chocolate bar was revolutionised as a Freddo bar with caramel. But we miss that devil.
16 of 2316) Twix Top
This was the highlight of our school packed lunches... Anyone else?!
17 of 2317) Cadbury Snaps
They're like Pringles - but chocolate. And just like our favourite snack, you couldn't ever just have one Snap!
18 of 2318) Rowntree's Secret
Withdrawn due to low sales volumes, the marshmallow centre wrapped in thick chocolate was a real treat back in the day.
19 of 2319) Cadbury Wispa Mint
We've all had a Wispa, haven't we? But the mint version had an extra edge to it that was just simply divine. Sigh.
20 of 2320) Texan
The mighty chew.
21 of 2321) Flyte
Forget Maltesers, this really was a lighter way to enjoy chocolate.
22 of 2321) White maltesers
Despite fans clamouring for the return of the white chocolate delights, Mars say they have no intention of bringing them back. Sob!
23 of 2323) Galaxy Truffle
The fan favourite was inexplicably removed and replaced by Twix in Celebrations tubs back in 2011. It's clear that some people are not over it as a petition was made in 2018 to bring the chocolate back.A spokesperson said: "We're always interested in hearing our fans' views on the products they love, but we don't have any current plans to bring back Galaxy Truffles."Get in the bin.
A quarter have caught a child choking on a toy, balloon or bouncy ball while one in 50 have even seen a child choke on a pen lid.
A further 24% have witnessed a child who has had a severe reaction to a temporary tattoo, paint or glitter product, and one in nine kids have cut themselves on a poorly-made party favour.
Researchers found party bags are given out at 93% of children’s parties, but more than half of parents admit they wouldn’t be confident in giving first aid to a child maimed by a party bag toy.
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It also emerged almost four in 10 parents start giving out party bags as early as their child’s first birthday, with the offerings most commonly going on until age 10.
Worryingly, 28% of parents admit they forget to check if the bags they give out are safe, while a quarter don’t always make sure bags their child is gifted at other parties are acceptable.
More than half say their child opens party bags and plays with the contents before their parents have had a chance to check it – and 43% have removed items to ensure their child stays safe.
What do you make of these stats? Do you think party bags are too much of a risk? Let us know over on Facebook and Twitter.
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