Laundry Detergent Packets Found To Pose Risk for Children
Recently published report featured in the medical journal Pediatrics suggests that an increasing number of children have been poisoned by laundry detergent packets resulting to fatal injuries and even deaths.
Based on data analysis of the 62,254 calls routed to US poison control centers nationwide between 2013 and 2014, health authorities found a 17% increase of calls linked to exposures to ultra-concentrated laundry/dishwasher detergent packets among toddlers below 6.
"We found that the majority of poisonings were due to exposure to laundry detergent packets and unfortunately it was precisely those products that were causing the greatest toxicity," remarked lead study author Dr. Gary Smith from the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio as reported by CBS.
The report further revealed that data appeared to have recorded the highest for the extremely concentrated laundry detergent pods at 17% followed in a close second by dishwasher detergent packets at 14%.
The effects from laundry detergent pod poisonings are reportedly more severe than the poisonings resulting from exposure to less concentrated forms of laundry or dish detergents.
"Coma, fluid in the lungs [pulmonary edema], stopped breathing and death were only observed among kids exposed to laundry detergent packets," Smith said as quoted by Forbes Magazine.
"Packets often resemble candy or juice, and are the perfect size for a young child to grab and put in their mouth."
Since children's odds of serious medical consequences due to laundry pod poisonings is 5 to 24 times higher than ordinary detergent poisonings, the authors of the study emphasized the need to let go of the dangerous products and instead switch back to safer alternatives.
"Many families don't realize how toxic these highly concentrated laundry detergent packets are," woefully said study co-author Dr. Marcel Casavant as per New York Post report.
He advised parents saying, "Use traditional laundry detergent when you have young kids in your home. It isn't worth the risk when there is a safer and effective alternative available."
