from Journal of Pediatrics
In 2012, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission stopped the sale of high-powered magnet sets, after thousands of injuries occurred when the small shiny objects were swallowed, often by children. After the ban, the average number of reported injuries declined. However, in 2016 the ban was overturned by a federal court. A study in the Journal of Pediatrics, reports after the ban was lifted, the average number of magnet injury cases per year has increased more than four hundred percent. Authors say children need to be protected, because parents don’t always know if their child has swallowed something so small and sometimes time is critical to avoid serious internal harm.