After mysterious death, sale is halted of water beads as toys

Amazon, Target and Walmart have voluntarily stopped selling water beads marketed for children after government officials, lawmakers and public health professionals called for a ban on the toys.

Water beads are tiny balls made of extremely absorbent polymer material. When exposed to liquid, they can expand to 100 times their initial size and weight, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Because they can grow in the stomach or intestine — becoming golf-ball-size or larger —  these toys pose immense health risks to young children, say experts. They can also cause injury if inserted in an ear or nostril, and can even be inhaled into a lung.

And, because they’re mostly made up of water, typical X-rays often do not pick them up. In a safety alert in September, the CPSC reported that these beads “can cause severe discomfort, vomiting, dehydration, intestinal blockages and life-threatening injuries” and may require surgery to remove.

The reported emergencies following ingestion include the death in July of a 10-month-old girl in Wisconsin. When she was found dead in the family’s home, her parents did not realize she had swallowed water beads they had bought for their older children.

The beads, which can also be used for agricultural or decorating purposes, are sold as  children’s toys to promote counting or develop motor skills. That use has drawn scrutiny from lawmakers and the CPSC.

Last month, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. of New Jersey introduced legislation aimed at instating a national ban on beads marketed to kids.

“They are specifically marketed to kids. In a single small package you can have 25, 50, or even 75 thousand of these beads and it just takes one to cause harm to a child,” Pallone said in a November news conference. “They are not labeled as dangerous to small children, there’s no warning, and they’re not hard to get.”

An Amazon spokesperson confirmed the company updated its water bead policy on Tuesday. The e-retailer said it would remove listings for water beads that refer to children, included images of children, or describe the bead using terms such as toy or play.

In a statement Tuesday, Target also said it will no longer sell water beads marketed to children, in-store or online.

Walmart, in an email sent Tuesday, said protecting customers is its top priority.

“We decided to voluntarily stop selling expanding water bead toy and craft items marketed to young children and have already taken steps to remove them from our stores and online,” a spokesperson in an email.

Consumer Reports first reported the voluntary bans by Amazon and Walmart.