How to make sure a toy is safe for your body

[DArwin]

How do you make sure that a sex toy is to use for my partner?

[DArwin]

or a person/ partner

[DArwin]

and does it differ between men and women or others?

[Heather]

Safety issues are pretty much the same no matter what gender someone is, but they can differ based on what body part or parts a toy is being used on. For example, a toy that's safe for use inside the vagina may not be safe for use inside the anus.

Generally, toy safety issues boil down to a few things:
a) the toy being made of non-toxic materials
b) the toy being well-made and not having things like sharp or unsanded edges
c) using toys in ways that are safe (like being sure to use lubricant with insertion toys and being sure to only use toys that have been sanitized or covered with a condom)
d) paying attention, as you would with any kind of sex, to your partner in terms of how toy use feels for them, and making whatever adjustments need to be made so things feel good.

Does that fill you in in the way you were looking for?

[DArwin]

yes, it does thank you. What are toxic materials and how do you clean/ sanitize toys?

[Jacob]

Hi DArwin,

I think some cheap toys can be made from rubbery plastics that it can be very difficult to confirm the contents of... From looking it up, it seems 'phthalates' are in lots of plastics and so can end up in many sex toys made from plastics but aren't great for your body. It's also kinda difficult to know for sure on less reputable manufacturers whether they contain it or not. I think the best approach here is to slap a condom on something if you have no way of knowing what it contains.

If you are able to look up the manufacturers and be assured that it's skin-safe then have a way. Also glass toys or silicone toys are non-porous which is great, but also a little more expensive.

With regards to cleaning... I would think that soap and water should be fine (as that is what we already put on our bodies rather safely), but there are some specific toy cleaning liquids available too. Also if you have some hardwaring toys made from metal, silicone or glass then you can boil them to sanitise them.