Congress is being urged by public health experts, government representatives, and worried parents to outlaw water beads, a kid’s toy that they claim presents serious health hazards. Congressman Frank Pallone Jr. of New Jersey announced at a press conference on Monday that he will be introducing a bill this week at the House of Representatives to establish a nationwide ban on children’s toys like beads marketed to children.
Kids are the target market for these. It only takes one of these Water beads to hurt a child, and you can have 25, 50, or even 75,000 of them in a tiny package, according to Pallone. “They are not difficult to obtain, there is no warning, and they are not classified as dangerous for small children.”
Pallone asserted that product warnings are insufficient, though. “There is no way to guarantee through education that they will be safe or that kids won’t handle them after they have fallen on the floor, so we have to ban them,” he continued.
Small balls of highly absorbent polymer material make up water beads. On the other hand, they can be enlarged up to 100 times.
However, the Consumer Product Safety Commission claims that they can expand to 100 times their original weight and size when submerged in liquid.
Popular stores like Target, Walmart, and Amazon sell these beads as toys for kids to help with counting and motor skills. The media team has contacted these businesses to request comments.
At the press conference, CPSC Chairman Alex Hoehn-Saric stated, “They’re being marketed as crafts, as a tactile toy for children with autism, even ammunition for toy guns.” “It is far too simple for beads to get misplaced or dropped, and then a baby or small child finds them, picks them up, and swallows them.”
Experts claim that these toys put young children’s health at grave risk because they have the potential to grow inside the body once consumed. The CPSC stated that these beads “may cause severe discomfort, vomiting, dehydration, intestinal blockages, and life-threatening injuries” and that they might need to be surgically removed in a safety alert from September.
Normal X-rays frequently miss them because they are mostly composed of water.
Dr. Harpreet Pall, a pediatric gastroenterologist and the Chair of Pediatrics at Hackensack Meridian Health K. Hovnanian Children’s Hospital said during the press conference that “it’s hard to tell in an emergency room that a water bead is causing the problem.”
According to Hoehn-Saric, the CPSC is looking into taking additional action regarding potentially dangerous chemicals in water beads in addition to the Commission’s recalls. However, he added, “This bill is so important because it is the fastest way to move forward and address the problem for all parents across the country.”
Originally posted 2023-11-14 10:14:46.