1. H1N1: The biggest story for the year for parents was H1N1, or swine flu. Swine flu was the talk of the web town for months as parents tracked the illness, learned the symptoms, fretted over their own children, and pondered the decision to vaccinate.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. CPSIA: The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) ushered in groundbreaking legislation with the passage of CPSIA, the Consumer Product Improvement Act. The act is intended to strengthen the standards for lead and other toxins, especially in products made for children. But the regulations were so strict that many small companies and toy manufacturers were left hanging out to dry. CPSC has backpedaled on the regulation with two delays aimed at helping small businesses meet the standard.

 

 

 3. BPA: BPA became the buzzword of the year in 2009 as companies jumped on the BPA-free bandwagon to ensure parents that their products were free of the potential toxin.

 

 

 

 

4. SIGG: Speaking of BPA, SIGG, the reusable bottle manufacturer, got the cold shoulder from consumers when it was revealed that the companies bottles (which were previously thought to be BPA-free) actually contained BPA. 

 

 

 

 

 

5. Peanut butter: Remember the great peanut butter recall back in January? That recall forced parents to start off the year looking for ways to dump processed foods and make their own versions of popular kids' foods.