Increasing number of children's products are being recalled

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A nonprofit safety group says the number of children's products recalled is on the rise and to make matters worse, online marketplaces are making it easier for dangerous items to stay on the market.

The video went viral in 2016: Ikea dressers shown toppling over, resulting in a massive recall and resulted in at least 8 deaths.

“We tend to believe that if something is for sale, it should be safe, but unfortunately, that is not always the case,” said Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan.

But the problems mixing dangerous products with kids aren't over.

In fact, they're on the rise.

Madigan joined consumer safety groups on Tuesday to announce a new report released by "Kids in Danger."

“There are a lot of things that are out there, that are still dangerous for children, and oftentimes, we don't find out about them until it's too late,” Madigan said.

According to the report, one children's product was recalled -- on average -- every four days last year.

Everything from clothes, watches, to toys -- and that's up 22 percent from 2016.

“These are products where the defect was not found by any sort of testing or work on the part of the manufacturer until it was already on store shelves, and in consumers' hands,” said Nancy Cowles, Director of Kids in Danger.

Cowles says another issue is recalled products staying on the market.

Cowles bought some items online months after they were recalled. She says more needs to be done to protect kids, as some consumers might not know they're buying -- or selling -- items under recall.

“Our goal is to educate both the sellers on those sites, as well as the sites themselves, to figure out a way to keep these products from entering a child's home and causing injury,” Cowles said.

To stay safe in the meantime, Kids in Danger says to check for any recalls before you buy children's products at saferproducts.gov.

Check your own inventory. Make sure the products your children use regularly aren't under recall.

And if your child gets injured by a product, report it right away to help make sure other kids stay safe.

“Everyone has an advocate, and we're advocating for families,” Cowles said.