Important Water Beads Warning after Infant Requires Urgent Surgery

Important water beads warning: A Victorian mum is warning parents about the dangers of water beads after her infant son had to have one surgically removed. Her message comes just months after another infant died from inhaling a water bead.

While there have been recent recalls of water beads in America, these popular sensory toys are sold nationwide in Australia. However, it’s so important for parents to be aware of the dangers they can pose and to ensure that no child under five is exposed to them.

Beads found in broken fidget toy

Earlier this month, Victorian mum, Sana Awan witnessed her seven-month-old son, Muhammad put a water bead in his mouth. The bead – a round polymer ball that expands in liquid – came from inside a sensory toy that had burst.

Although the beads are labelled as “non-toxic”, they pose a serious hazard.

As water beads can expand up to 400 times their original size when they come into contact with water, they present as a choking hazard if ingested.

“The bead came from inside a squishy frog toy that burst,” Ms Awan told Star Weekly. “I googled water beads and they can be quite dangerous for kids, but a lot of people don’t know the dangers. They can be dangerous for older kids too because kids might think they look like food and want to put them in their mouths.”

While Sana attempted to remove the bead as soon as she noticed her son with it, he swallowed it. Shortly after, he was coughing and distressed. Sana contacted a nurse at Victoria’s Virtual Emergency Department before being directed to Sunshine Hospital.

“I was very worried,” she said. “His tongue was blue and he was really uncomfortable. I knew we had to get help.”

A chest image confirmed that the infant had a water bead in his lung which had expanded and was causing a life-threatening blockage. He was transferred to the Royal Children’s Hospital where the bead was surgically removed.

Muhammad is now back at home with his family and is recovering well. Sana hopes that sharing her experience will prevent this from happening to any other child in the future.

“All I want to say is be careful with these toys. They can be very dangerous if little ones inhale them. We don’t want any family to go through what we went through.”

Water beads warning after infant death

Tragically, in July 2023, a 10-month-old baby lost his life after swallowing a water bead. The incident led to a massive recall of Water Bead Activity Kits, sold in America.

This death follows a November 2022 incident in which a 9-month-old child was seriously injured after swallowing water beads. The beads caused an intestinal obstruction requiring surgical treatment.

“Water beads are marketed as fun sensory toys for kids but can be deadly to babies and small children if they are ingested,” CPSC Chair Alexander Hoehn-Saric said in a statement.

“The water beads, generally purchased for older siblings, can be missed during clean up and swallowed days or even weeks later. The children who survived water bead ingestion suffered hospitalizations and surgeries and live with long-term health impacts.”

In addition to inhaling them, children have also presented to the ED after putting them in their ears, leading to infection. Two children, aged five and seven, required surgery after doctors couldn’t spot the clear beads during an ear exam. Both have ear drum damage and one has hearing loss.

Should we bin our water beads?

In a supervised setting, water beads are a wonderful sensory play activity. However, they do require supervision and children under five should not be around them. This is where it gets tricky as older siblings often have water beads and it’s not always easy to keep curious little siblings away.

Another issue is that many sensory and fidget toys have water beads inside them (making them squishy) but these can easily break. I’ve witnessed several fidget toys explode all over my carpets with these tiny beads seeping out.

As the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and Choice have also issued safety warnings about water beads in recent years due to the choking hazard, water bead kits are not marketed for children under five.

If you do have water beads at home, here are a few important safety tips:

Always monitor play. Avoid water bead play in children under the age of five.
Only use water beads on a table over a hard floor. Sweep or vacuum immediately afterwards.
When playing, put the beads in a container. This prevents them from falling on the ground.
Store the water beads in a tightly sealed container. Keep it in a safe place that young children can’t reach.