Intimidating, hybrid and with signs of violence — the EEC Council considered the impact of toys on the psyche of children

On January 25 this year in Moscow, the member countries of the Eurasian Economic Union agreed to develop requirements for toys that can negatively affect the mental development of children's health.

The proposal to introduce the requirements of "psychological and pedagogical safety" is due to the fact that the market today is filled with a variety of toys, often of an intimidating appearance, with signs of violence, hybrid appearance, etc. According to some psychologists, such "scary" toys provoke game plots related to violence and aggression.

The current technical regulations for toys set requirements only for materials on toxicological, hygienic and microbiological indicators, physical and mechanical, chemical and electrical properties, radiation safety. Thus, it is not possible to withdraw "scary" toys from the market.

According to the Kazakh side, voiced at the meeting, standards are needed to consider this issue, establishing criteria for determining the negative impact of toys on a child.

"The importance of the formation of physical and mental health of children is not questioned. Back in 2015, Kazakhstan initiated amendments to the technical regulations for the psychological and pedagogical examination of toys. Then the document was not supported due to the lack of a standard for determining the criteria for the negative impact of such toys on the child's psyche and the need for scientific research," Vice Minister of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan Aizhan Esmagambetova said at the EEC Council.  

According to her, today the market is already filled with toys of various kinds. Therefore, it is proposed to develop a standard for determining the criteria for the negative impact of toys on the child's psyche and then make proposals to change the current technical regulations for study at the level of the countries of the Eurasian Union in the appropriate order.