Parents have new resource for safety recalls Trying to track recalled products and foods that might be harmful to children is a nightmare for parents because there has been no single place to look -- until now.
A new website, Click Check Protect (www.clickcheckandprotect.org), is the product of the newly formed National School Safety Coalition convened by Consumer Reports, the National Parent Teacher Association and the National School Boards Association.
"The whole idea is to get the information into the homes of school-age children," said Don Mays, senior director of safety for Consumer Reports.
The hope is not only to encourage parents to check the site but also to have its new information distributed by weekly school newsletters sent to children's homes -- anything to make it easier for parents to learn about recalls, he said.
Recalls by manufacturers are difficult to track, not only because there are so many, but also because different regulators handle different recalls. For example, the Consumer Product Safety Commission announces recalls for products, the Food and Drug Administration for food and medications and the Department of Agriculture for meat.
"A child shouldn't be put at risk of injury or death simply because the information on recalled products didn't get to schools, caregivers and parents," said Jim Guest, president of Consumer Reports.
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Send some online help Google has a new website called Teach Parents Tech (www.teachparentstech.org). Filling out a simple format creates an e-mail to your tech-challenged family members to teach them computer-related things such as making a bookmark in their Web browser or finding movie times. The site is really well done, and there are a few dozen video lessons you can send.
DALLAS MORNING NEWS
