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Caution: Some of these items may not be legal to sell in Canada.Comstock

Hold it. Before you organize a garage sale this weekend, you may want to redirect some of your junk to the landfill.

Those old lawn darts? That good-as-new baby walker? You're better off throwing those in the trash (environment be damned).

Health Canada issued an advisory this week reminding anyone planning to hold a garage sale that they are legally responsible for making sure the products they sell are safe and meet regulatory requirements, regardless of whether the items are new or used.

Baby walkers and lawn darts with elongated tips are just a few products that are banned. "It is illegal to sell or give them away," Health Canada says on its website. "If you have any of these products in your possession, destroy and discard them so that they cannot be used."

The list of products that aren't banned outright, but could pose problems, is lengthy: car seats, strollers, garden torches, corded window blinds and curtains, hockey helmets and MP3 players, just to name a few.

Health Canada warns that these products must meet regulatory requirements. If you've removed the labels or lost the instruction manual, or if they products been recalled since you brought them home from the store, you're advised not to sell them.

Baby gates, for example, must come with instructions and information about the manufacturer, model name and the date of manufacture, while garden torches cannot be legally sold if they're missing their required labelling or packaging.

Health Canada also cautions that costume jewellery can contain lead or cadmium, which are highly toxic. Damaged toys, including plush toys with loose eyes or noses, are unsafe and therefore should not be sold, it says. And don't even think about selling cosmetics if you're not sure whether they meet the Food and Drugs Act and other applicable legislation.

If this sounds like a headache, wait till you see all the specific rules and requirements for cribs, cradles and bassinets.

The government department says both buyers and sellers should stay on top of product recalls, advisories and important regulatory changes by checking the Health Canada product recall database online. They should also carefully inspect all products and destroy any prohibited item to prevent future use.

Given how thorough these requirements are, it's probably a safe bet that a good number of garage sales don't comply.

How careful are you when it comes to buying, selling and giving away second-hand items?

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