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Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product

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Re: Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product

#31

Post by freditup »

esrauch wrote: post #29
anigbrowl wrote: post #5

This is a nonsense suit. The first time we bought a box of these, one of the first things we noticed was the warning about the dangers of strong magnets and the risks of swallowing them in particular.

I think the issue is that no parent can reasonably stop their kid from swallowing these if the kid wants to; do you disagree with that? Note that every McDonalds toy that is actually perfectly safe for young kids has a swallowing/choking hazard, so it's pretty much guaranteed that people can't know that they have to take those seriously in this case.

I personally do - just keep them out of reach / away from a child until they are old enough to know better. I don't disagree that swallowing these could be awful, but everyone knows you don't give small children things they can swallow, these are no different.

Re: Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product

#32

Post by anigbrowl »

esrauch wrote: post #29
anigbrowl wrote: post #5

This is a nonsense suit. The first time we bought a box of these, one of the first things we noticed was the warning about the dangers of strong magnets and the risks of swallowing them in particular.

I think the issue is that no parent can reasonably stop their kid from swallowing these if the kid wants to; do you disagree with that? Note that every McDonalds toy that is actually perfectly safe for young kids has a swallowing/choking hazard, so it's pretty much guaranteed that people can't know that they have to take those seriously in this case.

The packaging tells you very clearly (before you open it) what can happen if swallowed, and why. It also says that it's not suitable for children under 14. And I do disagree that you can keep small kids from swallowing: do not allow them to play with it. I'm infuriated by the idea that nobody can be allowed to buy these things because some parents are too stupid/irresponsible.

Re: Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product

#33

Post by unreal37 »

evdawg wrote: post #17
patio11 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On investigation, and somewhat surprisingly to me, it seems that medical experts legitimately believe that swallowing these particular small metal objects are worse than swallowing garden-variety small metal objects because if you swallow e.g. 5 BB pellets then you'll pass 5 BB pellets but if you swallow 5 high-powered magnets you now have one single clump o' metal which is large/heavy/sharp enough to damage your int…

I think the big difference is that thumb tacks are not a toy. These are a toy. They're marketed as a toy. They're given to children as a toy .

I own a set of these. They are not given to children young enough to put them in their mouth. Parents who do so are irresponsible.

Re: Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product

#34

Post by ghaff »

esrauch wrote: post #29
anigbrowl wrote: post #5

This is a nonsense suit. The first time we bought a box of these, one of the first things we noticed was the warning about the dangers of strong magnets and the risks of swallowing them in particular.

I think the issue is that no parent can reasonably stop their kid from swallowing these if the kid wants to; do you disagree with that? Note that every McDonalds toy that is actually perfectly safe for young kids has a swallowing/choking hazard, so it's pretty much guaranteed that people can't know that they have to take those seriously in this case.

There are any number of hazardous items around the home this could extend to. It's like saying that "No parent can reasonably stop their kid from swallowing drain cleaner if the kid wants to."

Re: Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product

#35

Post by nnnnnnnn »

patio11 wrote: post #10
patio11 wrote: post #4

One wonders how many children swallow, say, thumb tacks and whether this makes a prima facie case for the government to sue the manufacturers of all small pointy things. Sure enough, if one Googles [swallowed thumb tack]...

On investigation, and somewhat surprisingly to me, it seems that medical experts legitimately believe that swallowing these particular small metal objects are worse than swallowing garden-variety small metal objects because if you swallow e.g. 5 BB pellets then you'll pass 5 BB pellets but if you swallow 5 high-powered magnets you now have one single clump o' metal which is large/heavy/sharp enough to damage your int…

Clumping (or more dangerous: aligning in a single rigid pole) is not the only danger. Multiple magnets, or magnets and other ferromagnetic objects can attract while in different portions of the bowel -- pinching two walls together. This will eventually cause the pinched wall between the magnets to die, forming a hole.

Re: Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product

#36

Post by Sniffnoy »

evdawg wrote: post #17
patio11 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On investigation, and somewhat surprisingly to me, it seems that medical experts legitimately believe that swallowing these particular small metal objects are worse than swallowing garden-variety small metal objects because if you swallow e.g. 5 BB pellets then you'll pass 5 BB pellets but if you swallow 5 high-powered magnets you now have one single clump o' metal which is large/heavy/sharp enough to damage your int…

I think the big difference is that thumb tacks are not a toy. These are a toy. They're marketed as a toy. They're given to children as a toy .

Is there no way we can say "They're a toy but not a children's toy"?

Re: Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product

#37

Post by irq »

knowtheory wrote: post #24

So, what happens in animals who swallow magnets is that on occasion, two magnets or a magnet and another object can be in different windy bits of the intestinal tract and stick together, pinching two otherwise unconnected parts of the intestine together, sometimes kinking them together sufficiently to cause a blockage, which doctors say could cause perforation of the intestine or other very bad things. So as many wil…

Some animals are purposely fed magnets to improve their health. For example, the Cow Magnet:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cow_magnet

Re: Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product

#38

Post by beedogs »

I know this is going to sound harsh, but maybe if your kid choked to death on a magnetic toy, he or she just wasn't of sturdy enough stock to begin with. In the brains department.

I wish the Feds would go after actual problems with the same fervor they tackle this kind of crap.

Re: Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product

#39

Post by andrewfelix »

knowtheory wrote: post #24

So, what happens in animals who swallow magnets is that on occasion, two magnets or a magnet and another object can be in different windy bits of the intestinal tract and stick together, pinching two otherwise unconnected parts of the intestine together, sometimes kinking them together sufficiently to cause a blockage, which doctors say could cause perforation of the intestine or other very bad things. So as many wil…

Other things marketed as playful or safe for kids in the US;

- Bicycles (Over 500 deaths a year)

- Battery powered toys (Roughly 2500 battery ingestions a year, Roughly 2% Fatality Rate)

- Bottles, Pacifiers etc. (2200 ER Injuries per year)

Re: Feds file suit against Buckyballs, retailers ban product

#40

Post by pessimizer »

I can't believe they waited this long. I'd be surprised if a lot of adults haven't swallowed these, too. Everybody knows that BBs and pennies pass easily, so why wouldn't you think that about magnets? It isn't like the warnings are printed on every ball, and there's nothing intuitive about their danger.

Tiny, strong BB magnets can have no place in a house that ever has kids in it. It's not safe to have them in or on daddy's desk, or anywhere else. Maybe in the gun safe.

Also, I always assumed that the Fuller estate got a cut of this. Pretty rotten all around.

edit: swallowing small strong magnets is a fairly unique, well known, and long standing danger. When I was a kid, a lot of plastic items were made magnetic by gluing in tiny (maybe 3/4 cm diameter) disks. After a lot of resectioning of the necrotic bowels of a lot of children, and a lot of death amongst both children and animals, this ended. Good riddance. It's safer to let your kid play with a bag of broken glass.

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