I am slowly learning to be a smarter consumer when shopping at dollar stores after learning about many of the items being sold there that contain toxic chemicals like PVC, bromine, lead, flame-retardant chemicals, and more. That is NOT to say I haven’t purchased these items there before…I think many of us have. I can recall one of the favorite things my 2 boys played with around the age of one were the Mardi-Gras style beads. They wore them everywhere they went and loaded them in their toy trains like they were precious cargo. Unfortunately I am now learning that they are one of the most toxic items being sold at dollar stores. Just this past weekend I bought a fun strand of candy corn style Halloween lights to hang in my boys’ rooms for Halloween. Low and behold, they are on the list of being highly toxic. Window clings are another item I regularly buy for each holiday – my sons have been helping me hang them on windows around the house since the age of one. I cringe seeing that these, too can be highly toxic. This evening, I will be going thru our kitchen draw and removing all the fun, plastic straws we have purchased from the dollar stores as well since they apparently are not a wise dollar store purchase. They will be replaced with these Stainless Steel Drinking Straws – Set of 6
The article posted on Woman’s Day earlier this year about The 10 Most Toxic Items at Dollar Stores is a real eye opener and should be read by anybody who shops at dollar stores. We all love a bargain, but in the end, a bargain isn’t worth harming your health. You can still shop at the dollar store, but the point I am trying to get across is to be a smart, educated consumer and be wise about your purchasing decisions. I still shop at the dollar store weekly but have learned to choosy about what I purchase and I urge you to do the same. There are still lots of healthy choices you can buy at dollar stores like what I got in my shopping trip at 99 Cents Only on 9/20/15 here – but while shopping there, I think it is important to keep in mind that these items are many of the potentially toxic items that maybe you should avoid:
- Electronic Accessories
- Plastic Kitchen Utensils
- Flannel-Backed Table Covers
- Metallic Christmas Garlands
- Silly Straws
- Vinyl Floor Coverings
- Holiday Light Strings
- Metal Children’s Jewelry
- Metallic Beads
- Window Clings and Removable Wall Stickers
. It is currently on sale for $6.69. The price trend shown below shows it’s lowest price ever on Amazon was $6.49 back on December 6, 2011. With it being just $.20 more than the lowest price, this is an excellent price for this much loved toy! I use this price tracker a lot when I am trying to figure out if an item is a good deal or not. You can also use it to set up price alerts so that it notifies you when something hits a certain price you designate, or if the price drops. It is a really handy tool! I hope this helps the rest of you when you are shopping on Amazon!