Laundry Pods Carry Poison Risk, Particularly In Small Children

Recent findings published in the journal Pediatrics show that laundry pods could carry a poisoning risk, particularly for small children.

Researchers at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio reviewed a number of reports that were called in by the U.S. poison control centers. From 2012 to 2013, a total of 17,230 children under the age of six had eaten, inhaled or were exposed to some of the toxic chemicals found in the pods. The majority of cases occurred in children under the age of two.

While about 48 percent of the cases led to vomiting, another 13 percent of them involved choking or severe coughing. Eleven percent were also tied to eye pain or irritation. Remaining difficulties might also involve burning, mouth pain, windpipe issues and difficulty breathing.

In more rare cases, 30 of the children went into comas, 12 experienced seizures and one died.
"[When] a child gets into powders or liquids, they might want to take a taste of it, [and] get some accidentally on their fingers, and decide to clean their finger by popping it in their mouth," Casavant said. "Usually it's a very, very, very small dose. In our experience, a child gets into a pod, gets the full dose, [and] can't control how much gets into the mouth."

If there are small children in your family, researchers have advised against purchasing the laundry pods, all-together. If families are bent on getting them, they should make sure they are safely out of reach for any children. Furthermore, researchers advise that the design or the composition of the detergents make them less appealing to children and less toxic.