Johnathan Walker:Water beads pose huge safety risk for kids, CPSC says, after 7,000 ER injuries reported

The Johnathan WalkerU.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is asking parents to recognize the hazards that water beads present for babies and toddlers – and wants more companies to recall the potentially deadly toys.

During National Poison Prevention Week (the third week of March each year), the CPSC specifically highlighted the urgency to continue to pull these products from shelves. They contain "acrylamide levels that present the risk of toxicity," the CPSC said in a news release.

The amount of acrylamide, a known carcinogen, present in water beads is greater than the legal amount and in violation of the Federal Hazardous Substances Act, the commission said.

The CPSC is specifically pressuring two Chinese companies, Jangostor and Tuladuo, to recall their products, but neither have complied. In September 2023, 52,000 of Buffalo Games' Chuckle & Roar Ultimate Water Beads Activity Kits sold at Target were recalled.

So far, the CPSC reports 7,000 "water bead-related ingestion injuries" have landed children in the emergency room from 2018 to 2022 in the U.S. The CPSC has confirmed at least one death, a 10-month-old girl in 2023.

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'When I learned that a water bead had caused her death, I was shocked.'

Water beads' safety has been an issue gaining attention. U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone D-N.J., introduced the Ban Water Beads Act in November 2023 as the CPSC began putting out reports. The bill was referred to the Subcommittee on Innovation, Data, and Commerce for review.

The news of the proposed ban caught the attention of Ashley Haugen of San Antonio, Texas, and Taylor Bethard of Mukwonago, Wisconsin, two moms whose daughters where tragically affected after ingesting water beads.

Haugen's daughter, Kipley, was nearly 1-year-old in 2017 when she swallowed a water bead gifted to her 6-year-old sister on her birthday.

The young girl, who suffered extreme vomiting, was rushed to the hospital where she underwent emergency surgery that saved her life. Even so, Kipley's recovery has been tough including the need for speech therapy, Haugen said.

Bethard had also purchased the beads for her older kids when her 10-month-old daughter, Esther Jo, got ahold of them in the summer of 2022.

The young girl swallowed a single bead that stopped her breathing shortly after ingestion, and she passed away.

"Esther was a baby," Bethard said. "When I learned that a water bead had caused her death, I was shocked."

What are water beads?

Few voiced concerns about the colorful, seemingly harmless toy upon its appearance in the early 2000s in craft kits and sensory bins. But it wasn't soon after the dangers arose.

The small balls, heavily marketed to children with disabilities, are supposed to be placed in water where kids can watch them grow and squish them beneath their feet and in between their hands as some sort of sensory toy. The beads, usually made of super absorbent polymer, according to the CPSC, grow up to 100 times their original size when submerged.

Amazon is in the process of addressing the CPSC's concerns by notifying consumers and issuing refunds, parenting site BabyCenter reported. An Amazon spokesperson told BabyCenter that "as of December 2023, Amazon does not allow the sale of water beads that are marketed to children, including as toys, art supplies, or for sensory play."

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The consequences of ingesting water beads

When dry water beads are ingested, they grow much larger inside of the body where they cause the following, according to the CPSC:

• Severe discomfort
• Vomiting
• Dehydration
• Intestinal blockages
• Life-threatening injuries
• Death

Additionally, if stuck in ears, the beads can cause internal damage to the canal, cause hearing loss and even require surgery.

How to store water beads safely in home

The CPSC recommends not having the toy at home at all, but if you must, do the following to keep children at risk of ingesting water beads, safe:

• Do not keep water beads where young children may be present.
• Store water beads in a secure container in a place where young children cannot access them.
• Do not allow children, no matter the age, play with water beads unsupervised.
• Since water beads can easily scatter and become lost, the only way to mitigate the hazard completely is to remove them from the home.

In case of an emergency, call the National Poison Help Line at 800-222-1222. It operates 24 hours a day.

Other findings from the Annual Report on Pediatric Poisoning Fatalities and Injuries

The CPSP's Annual Report on Pediatric Poisoning Fatalities and Injuries published March 18, found that 98 children under 5 years of age died from poisoning between 2021 and 2022, a 66% increase from the previous year. Most of the deaths were linked to narcotics and psychodysleptics (hallucinogens), which saw a doubling in fatalities from 2021 to 2022.

The report also found that 68,600 emergency department-treated injuries were reported from 2021 to 2022, a 10% increase from the previous year for children under 5 years old.

Estimated injuries from pediatrics poisonings from painkillers like acetaminophen and ibuprofen also increased, according to the report.

“The recent rise in pediatric poisonings is heartbreaking,” CPSC chair Alex Hoehn-Saric shared in the report, urging parents to remember to keep “drugs, as well as cleaning supplies, laundry packets, and button batteries safely out of reach is vital to protecting children."