I don't know what everyone thinks about the picture
Is there an impression or not?
Put such a small bead in the water
It will grow on its own
That's right, it's the kid's market
"Crystal Baby"
As one of the "Internet celebrities" who are all the rage in elementary school
Crystal baby with its excellent appearance
and the trait that drinking water will "grow up".
Stand out from the crowd in the major "traffic"!
See this
How many friends are there in the 80s, 90s, and 00s
Childhood DNA moved?
however
A number of e-commerce platforms urgently announced:
For security reasons
This toy will be discontinued!
There are potential safety hazards
Multi-platform emergency removal of children's water droplets
According to CCTV financial reports, recently, Amazon, Walmart and Target, three well-known retailers in the United States, have issued statements saying that they will stop selling children's water drop products due to potential safety hazards.
Amazon said on the 14th that for safety reasons, third-party sellers are no longer allowed to sell children's droplet products, and sellers must remove all related products before December 22.
Previously, Walmart has said that it will stop selling waterdrop toys and crafts for children under the age of 9, and at the same time remove such products from physical stores and online stores, and Target also said that it will ban the sale of waterdrop toys for children aged 12 and under.
It is understood that this kind of water bead product is a kind of highly absorbent, polymeric material made of small colored beads, usually only the size of a mung bean. But when they come into contact with water or other liquids, they expand in size hundreds of times, turning into small ballballs of smooth and transparent Q-bombs.
In the U.S., they are sold as toys on their own or in sensory kits designed for children with developmental disabilities.
According to the U.S. Consumer Rights Protection Agency, young children can swallow water droplets while playing, causing severe discomfort, vomiting and dehydration, and some are even life-threatening. In addition, it is also possible for water droplets to get into the child's ears and cause hearing damage or even complete loss.
Data shows that between 2016 and 2022, about 7,800 young children across the United States were hospitalized for emergencies while playing with water droplets. U.S. House members from New Jersey proposed legislation last month to ban the nationwide sale of all beads for children.
Recently
"Crystal Baby" is very popular with children
Many people also "raise" it as a toy pet
It is used for potted plants to retain water and interior decoration
Unscrupulous merchants sell it as a toy
Children's water droplets known as "crystal babies".
It's not actually a toy
Children's water droplets, also known as water fairies, bubble beads, ocean babies, crystal mud, and water absorption bombs. It is made of starch mixed with acrylonitrile or acrylate, which has certain toxicity. Some merchants may add some industrial pigments during the production process, and most of the finished SpongeBob SquarePants are colorful.
Its water absorption capacity and water retention capacity are very strong, and after soaking in water for five or six hours, it can "grow" several times or even dozens of times when it was originally only the size of a bean. Because of its functions such as water absorption and water retention, it is widely used in potted plants for water retention and interior decoration.
A bonsai using water sprites. Figure: Defective Product Management Center of the State Administration for Market Regulation
This kind of children's water bead product is a small colored or transparent bead the size of a plastic ball, which absorbs water and expands after being soaked in water, and becomes larger. Some merchants take advantage of this feature to sell them as toys after packaging, and in addition, some projectile toys use water spirits as projectiles, also known as absorbent bombs and soft bead bullets.
How big can SpongeBob get when he absorbs water?
Let's take a look
Compare with soybeans before soaking in water
Soak in water for 1 hour
Soak in water for 2 hours
After soaking in water for 3 hours, the diameter is about the same as that of a beverage bottle cap
What's even more terrifying
SpongeBob SquarePants after three hours of soaking in water
It's still far from its maximum volume
......
Everyone knows that the water content of the human body is very high, and after SpongeBob SquarePants enters the human body, it can immediately give full play to its strengths, absorb water "tons and tons", and become bigger, bigger, bigger...... Children have poor discrimination and a strong curiosity about the outside world. Especially for children aged 1-3, it is easy to eat SpongeBob SquarePants as jelly beans, and some children will stuff SpongeBob SquarePants into their nostrils because of "fun...... When this happens, the consequences are devastating.
Similar "toys" are available on the mainland
Accidental ingestion occurs in children
The reporter looked at the major domestic online sales platforms, and children's water bead products are hot selling products in the children's toy category, with prices ranging from 2 yuan to 20 yuan. When the reporter asked the seller whether this kind of water beads was dangerous, the store clearly replied no, "It is not recommended for children to play, it is easy to eat by mistake, this is mainly used for hydroponic green plants, making wishing bottles and other handicrafts." The store said that it was not recommended to use it as a toy, but the reporter found that there was a clear word "toy" in the product slogan.
"The children at home have been buying this water bead since elementary school to use it as a bullet for the water bomb gun, and we are also worried that the children will buy it themselves." A parent of a student in Chengdu, Sichuan Province told reporters that there had been cases of children in their classes who had accidentally eaten water droplets and entered the hospital, but the vendors at the school gate had been selling them, and they could only restrain their children more.
According to media reports on October 17, 2023, Yuncheng Maternal and Child Health Hospital in Shanxi Province received a two-year-old toddler who suddenly had a stomachache and vomiting two days before the visit. After examination at the county hospital, the doctor found that the child had a cyst in the right lower abdomen and recommended continued observation. On October 17, the toddler's stomach pain and vomiting worsened, and the parents took her to the Yuncheng Maternal and Child Health Hospital for treatment.
After consultation with multidisciplinary doctors, it was confirmed that the child had complete mechanical intestinal obstruction, which could not be relieved by conservative treatment. At 11 a.m. on October 18, doctors operated on the child. During the operation, the doctor found that there was a foreign body at the end of the child's ileum, which caused obstruction, and the intestinal tube to be cut was actually a "bubble bead" with a diameter of seven or eight centimeters.
Zou Jixiang, a pediatric surgeon at the hospital, said that the child accidentally ingested the "bubble beads", which eventually blocked the digestive tract and caused intestinal obstruction. Fortunately, through timely surgery, the child turned the crisis into safety. If surgery is not performed in time, it may cause intestinal necrosis, intestinal perforation and life-threatening.
As you can see, these look very cute
It is a small ball that is soft and soft to the touch
If you are not careful, you can become a "life-killing ball"
Multiple departments have previously issued warnings
In recent years, there have been frequent injury accidents involving water fairy products. In order to protect children from such products, on June 14, 2015, the Defective Product Management Center of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of the People's Republic of China (now the Defective Product Management Center of the State Administration for Market Regulation) issued a consumption warning:
01
The water sprites used as potted plants to retain water are not toys, and children and their guardians should not buy and play with them as toys; the absorbent bombs and soft bead bullets used as projectiles in projectile toys are similar products to the water sprites and do not meet the current toy safety standards, so they should not be purchased and played.
02
If the guardian finds that the child has swallowed or inhaled the water fairy products, or the child has sudden abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea and other clinical symptoms suspected of swallowing the water spirit, he should immediately send the child to the doctor for treatment. In the accidents that have occurred, some children only show suspected flu symptoms in the early stage of swallowing water fairies, which may cause misdiagnosis, delay treatment, and cause serious harm to children.
On May 25, 2018, the China Consumers Association issued a warning for the consumption of children's toys, mentioning a number of cases of "dangerous toys" injuring children, one of which is a typical case of misplay.
It is mentioned in the article that water spirits may be mistaken for food by children due to their shape, color, and volume, causing children to swallow or inhale them. After entering the respiratory tract, the water spirit absorbs water and swells, which may block the respiratory tract and cause suffocation; after entering the digestive tract, it will cause intestinal obstruction, intestinal dilation, secondary infection, water and electrolyte imbalance, and even intestinal perforation, intestinal necrosis, which can be life-threatening at any time.
In addition, there have been cases of injuries in which the fragments of the water spirits adhere to the fingers when children play with the water spirits, and when they rub their eyes with their hands, the fragments of the water spirits can scratch the eyeballs, causing crystal infections and possibly blindness. There have been many similar injuries in the country. Some projectile toys use water sprites as projectiles, which can cause suffocation injuries if shot into a child's throat.
A water sprite sold as a toy. Figure: Defective Product Management Center of the State Administration for Market Regulation
So, for the sake of the children's safety
Please stop using baby crystals as a toy!
Forward it to your friends and family
Remind each other!
Source: Southern Metropolis Daily (nddaily), Shenzhen big event (nandusz), N video report