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Spring is garage sale season.

Most garage sale shoppers don't give health and safety a second thought.

But before you go bargain hunting, you need to be aware of a potential danger.

Shopping at garage sales is a very popular hobby throughout Mid-Missouri.

"You can get really good deals. A lot of times you can get brand new items with tags still on them for a fraction of the price,” avid garage sale shopper Sara Seaver said.

But shopping at garage sales can be risky and even dangerous.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission said it's always important to know what you are about to buy at a garage sale.

"One of the things that's really important is for consumers to be aware that they could possibly be picking up a product that may have been recalled. Recalled products can pose various dangers to consumers," CPSC's Nychelle Fleming said.

Before you go shop at garage sales, it's always important to check CPSC's website for recalled items, because when you're shopping at garage sales you never know what you may come back with.

"I think you need to familiarize yourself with things that are recalled. Recently there have been a lot of recalls for like Fisher Price and some of the other major toy companies,” avid garage sale shopper Sandra Shasteen said. “The main concern should be your kids safety not to find that bargain or great deals."

Recalled items are not the only thing you should worry about at garage sales.

There are other risks, such as lice and bed bugs.

Most of the people I talked with, told me they don't buy items that could be infested.

"Anything that could carry them, like pillows, fabric-covered rockers, and gliders, and stuff like that I steer clear away from them,” Shasteen said.

Recalls and bugs don't pose much of a deterrent to most shoppers.

They told me when your out shopping at garage sales, you just have to know what you're buying.

"You always just have to be aware as a buyer, and always wash everything in hot water when ever you get it home just to prevent any kind of contamination in your own home,” Seaver said.

Before you head to your next garage sale, you can click here to find out what items have been recalled.

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  This was a story you asked us to cover. Here's what you had to say on our Facebook wall:

Dema Schnauss We have bought electrical gadgits we later regretted. NOW, anything "electrical" we ask to see if it works! :) If there were no garage sales, we could not afford the nice things we have!

Nicole Wood As if bringing home more junk wasnt bad enough, the thought of opening a critter hotel is worse by far!!

Robert Albrecht People don't have extra stuff to sell if they don't have extra money to buy that extra stuff in the first place. A sure sign that times are hard is when yard sales are skimpy on items. If you have already sold off half the stuff in your house to pay bills and what not its hard to justify putting the half on the front lawn.