Illinois AG Lisa Madigan is tired of children dying after ingesting improperly secured magnets in children’s products, so she’s suggesting a ban, according to the Chicago Tribune:

Illinois Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan sent a second letter Friday to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission urging a law banning magnets in children’s toys.

The letters follow the Tribune series “Hidden Hazards,” which revealed how the understaffed and sluggish commission fails to protect children from dangers in toys and other products.

Earlier this year, the Tribune reported the agency’s botched recall of Magnetix Magnetic Building Sets and the death of a child who swallowed magnets that fell out of the toys. This week, the Tribune reported on the dangers posed by loose magnets in children’s jewelry.

Magnet deaths are pretty horrific. Ingesting two or more magnets causes them to attract within the digestive system, resulting in tearing of the stomach and intestines. The best case scenario is emergency surgery, but at least one child has died after ingesting magnets that fell out of a toy.

Millions of toys have been recalled this year due to design flaws in which toys can break and release dangerous magnets.

Attorney general again urges ban on toy magnets [Chicago Tribune]

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