According to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission consumers should immediately stop using and dispose of magnetic ball sets sold by Dongguan Qihangren Trade because the loose, hazardous magnets pose a risk of serious injury or death if ingested by children.
CPSC testing determined the magnets do not comply with the requirements of the mandatory federal regulation for magnet toys because they contain one or more strong magnets that fit within CPSC’s small parts cylinder.
When high-powered magnets are swallowed, the ingested magnets can attract to each other, or to another metal object, and become lodged in the digestive system. This can result in perforations, twisting and/or blockage of the intestines, infection, blood poisoning and death.
CPSC estimates 2,400 magnet ingestions were treated in hospital emergency departments annually from 2017 through 2021. CPSC is aware of eight deaths since 2005 involving the ingestion of hazardous magnets, including two outside of the United States.