Hundreds of kids poisoned by laundry detergent pods

Small, colorful laundry detergent pods are a poisoning risk for young children, reports a study published in Pediatrics. Over 17,000 cases of children’s exposure to chemicals in the laundry pods were reported to U.S. poison control centers in 2012 and 2013, according to researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Ohio. In that same period, more than 750 children were hospitalized for injuries arising from exposure to chemicals in the laundry pods.

Most of the injuries in this study resulted from one to two-year-olds ingesting the pods. Ingestion of the pods caused vomiting in nearly half of the children. Children also suffered from coughing and choking, drowsiness and eye irritations from the detergent pods. Ingestion of detergent pods can also cause burns to children’s mouths and throats, problems breathing, esophageal perforation and skin rashes. In addition, the death of one young child, a 7-month-old boy, occurred after he ingested a laundry detergent pod.

Another recent study highlights the risk of serious eye injuries from the

US CPSC on Flickr

detergent pods. In that study, 10 children received significant corneal injuries when detergent got into their eyes after biting or squeezing detergent pods.

“Laundry detergent pods are small, colorful, and may look like candy or juice to a young child,” saidMarcel J. Casavant, M.D., a co-author of the study. “It can take just a few seconds for children to grab them, break them open, and swallow the toxic chemicals they contain, or get the chemicals in their eyes.”

Although at least one detergent manufacturer changed its packaging, researchers say more needs to be done. “It is not clear that any laundry detergent pods currently available are truly child resistant; a national safety standard is needed to make sure that all pod makers adopt safer packaging and labeling,” said Gary Smith, M.D., Dr.PH, the study’s senior author. “Parents of young children should use traditional detergent instead of detergent pods.”

Nationwide Children's Hospital Video Grab

In March 2013, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a public warning about the dangers of liquid laundry pods. It urged parents to keep these products away from children as “water, wet hands, and saliva can cause the packets to dissolve quickly and release their highly concentrated toxic contents.” The CPSC advises families to take the following steps:

• Do not let children handle the laundry packets.
• Keep the liquid laundry packets sealed in their original packaging, and make sure they are locked up and out of a child’s sight and reach.
• Ensure your hands are dry before using a laundry packet/capsule, and wash and dry your hands thoroughly after each use.
• If swallowed or exposed to the eye: immediately call Poison Help at: 1-800-222-1222 in the United States. If swallowed, rinse as much of the detergent as possible from the mouth. If exposed to the eye, flush the eye with water for at least 15 minutes.

Sources:

New Study Finds Laundry Detergent Pods a Serious Poisoning Risk for Children Younger than 6 Years of Age in the United States

Corneal injuries from liquid detergent pods

Liquid detergent pods pose risk to children's eye health

CPSC and ACCC Warn of Poison Dangers with Liquid Laundry Packets

I originally published this article on Examiner.com.