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Nashville 9-month-old gets surgery after eating 'non-toxic' water beads

Water beads are colorful beads made of water and water-absorbing polymer used as sensory toys for children and grow in water.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A 9-month-old boy is recovering from surgery after accidentally swallowing water beads while at daycare.

Water beads are colorful beads made of water and water-absorbing polymer used as sensory toys for children and grow in water. The water beads were initially out of reach, but a display that contained them had reportedly fallen and caused the beads to scatter.

The boy's mother, Janet Macdonald, wrote in a post on Facebook that the incident happened Wednesday, Dec. 14. The beads are not meant to be eaten.

"This is a recipe for disaster if they are swallowed," said Macdonald, "The container says non-toxic, but they are non-toxic the same way a meat cleaver is non-toxic. They do NOT dissolve in the digestive tract..."

The hazard regarding what happens when swallowed was reportedly not marked on the bottle. Macdonald said her son vomited for hours and was dry heaving in his sleep.

Macdonald's pediatrician told her that if he had thrown up pieces and wasn't choking that he should be fine. But her son was not fine, he couldn't hold down food and her son's doctor found the situation was growing more serious.

"By this time with some sleuthing and pointed questions to daycare, we knew they were water beads."

Macdonald's son was rushed to the hospital for a variety of tests. Macdonald said they performed an x-ray and ultrasound, gave her son IV fluids, and consulted with several surgeons and anesthetists.

Her son continued to vomit from the water beads.

"At 9 a.m. the next day, they carried my poor sweet baby away to surgery. It was one of the worst feelings I've ever had in my life. I was all alone in the hospital holding room exhausted after two nights of little sleep, still wearing yesterday's work clothes and covered in dry baby puke. After being strong for so long, I wept and wept," said Macdonald.

During a two-hour surgery to remove the beads, doctors discovered the beads had swollen and one had blocked his pyloric valve in his stomach near his intestines.

"At one point the surgeons had his entire digestive tract out of his body and ran their fingers down the length to make sure all the pieces were out. I saw the lead surgeon's picture and I will never lose that image in my mind," said Macdonald.

Though it was an accident, Macdonald says that both her children are young enough to still put random objects in their mouths.

"I know OTS, teachers, and parents like to use water beads as sensory toys, because they are so colorful, squishy "non-toxic" fun. But the consequences of swallowing them can be dire," said Macdonald.

This story initially appeared on WSMV.com. 

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