Overview

• Around 300 children are hospitalized annually in the UK after swallowing magnets, with one in ten requiring life-saving surgery.
• The University of Southampton's study, using data from 66 hospitals, is the first to quantify the scale of this issue nationally.
• Approximately 6% of cases are linked to social media trends, where children mimic tongue piercings using small magnets.
• Experts warn that many magnetic toys exceed legal safety limits, with flux levels 17 times higher than permitted, posing severe risks.
• Advocates call for stricter regulations, improved product labeling, and routine X-rays to detect asymptomatic magnet ingestion.