Amazon, Target and more will stop selling water beads marketed to kids due to rising safety concerns
By WYATTE GRANTHAM-PHILIPS and MELISSA PEREZ WINDER
Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Three major U.S. retailers — Amazon, Target and Walmart — say they’re suspending sales of water-bead products marketed to young children due to growing safety concerns. Water beads are small, colorful balls made of superabsorbent polymers. They’re are often sold as toys, including in craft activity kits, and as sensory tools for children with developmental disabilities. But warnings about the dangers of the beads being ingested have been piling up. According to the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, an estimated 7,800 water bead-related injuries were treated in hospital emergency rooms between 2016 and 2022.
