Local

Cheap clothes bought online could pose risks for children

Buying cheap and fast fashion attire from online retailers could expose your children to chemicals and other dangers.

In the past three years, stores like Target and JC Penney have issued recalls for children’s clothes and shoes.

So have some online retailers like Amazon.

Most recalls involve choking hazards, contain harmful chemicals or have burn risks.

[ALSO READ: Recall alert: Odor-Eaters recalls select sprays due to presence of carcinogen]

There were children’s pajamas sold on Amazon that did not meet federal standards, which means they could burn more easily.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission said federal flammability standards are stricter for children’s clothes.

“There’s a really a lack of transparency in the industry,” said Charlotte Tate, director of Labor Justice Campaigns at Green America.

The nonprofit advocates for clothing makers and retailers to publish what chemicals they put in their clothes.

Green America’s “Toxic Textiles Report” looks at what those companies are doing to protect consumers.

“Amazon came out at the bottom of our scorecard,” Tate said. “They don’t have a public chemical management policy for apparel, so it’d be really hard for a consumer who wants to know what’s in their clothing to figure it out.”

An Amazon spokesperson said, “Amazon requires that selling partners provide compliance testing and documentation from Consumer Product Safety Commission-accepted labs for all children’s sleepwear sold in our store.”

The company did not comment on Green America’s findings.

The CPSC and Green America recommend looking for clothing certification.

Also, wash new clothes before wearing them.

(Watch the video below: Father accused of leaving small child in car while working shift at Amazon warehouse)