A mother claims her son had to have his bowel removed after eating magnets that he “mistook for sprinkles” when they fell out of his Temu toy.
Kaela Modery of Maine bought her four-year-old son Gage a set of magnetic building blocks from the online retailer last month.
However, the 28-year-old claims that the exterior parts of the “fragile” toy kept “popping off” while her son was playing with it, exposing the inner magnets. Days later, little Gage started vomiting and complaining about stomach pains.
Only when Kaela was cleaning her son’s room did she discover a half-eaten cookie under his bed covered in small and slim magnets, which she claims he mistook for sprinkles.
Horrified, the mother of four rushed Gage to the hospital, where an x-ray revealed that he had swallowed seven of the toy magnets and needed emergency surgery.
During the operation, doctors had to temporarily remove Gage’s entire bowel to look for the magnets that had fused his left and right colons.
Thankfully, the bowel was reinserted, but his mother claims doctors are unsure of the long-term consequences and that he could have died if they had perforated his bowel.
Fortunately, Gage recovered completely, but nursing assistant Kaela is now urging Temu to take immediate action regarding the ‘unsafe’ product.
Kaela, who lives in Millinocket, Maine, said, “I got my son some magnetic building blocks for Christmas.
“When I received them, I noticed they were quite fragile, but based on the reviews, this seemed quite normal.
“He enjoyed playing with them. As the days passed, I noticed the covers kept popping off, but I didn’t think much about the magnets. I threw away the broken ones.
“Then my son complained of stomach pain and threw up food and water.
“While sweeping my son’s room, I came across some small magnets on a half-eaten cookie beneath his bed.
“He obviously mistook them for sprinkles and decided to eat them with a cookie.
“I was so scared because I’d heard so many stories about children ingesting magnets.”
Kaela rushed her child to the hospital, where scans revealed Gage had ingested seven of the toy’s magnets.
The child had to undergo emergency surgery, in which surgeons closely examined his colon to find the location of the deadly items.
Kaela explained, “The magnets had traveled down to his colon and fused his left and right colon together, making it impossible for him to digest anything that could cause a blockage.
“They had to cut open his stomach, remove his entire bowel, and individually search his colon for the magnet because they couldn’t find it laparoscopically.
“I was terrified.” I prayed fervently that my son would not suffer long-term consequences from this.
“The damage could necessitate the removal of a portion of his bowel.
“There was a risk of infection from the magnetics perforating his bowels, which would have resulted in his death.
“There would have been no intervention, no saving him. It would have killed him.
“I felt my heart leaving my body. I thought, “Am I going to lose my son over this stupid toy?” As a mother, I blamed myself. “I wish I could go back and never have bought that item.”
Fortunately, Gage recovered completely after being hospitalised for five days, but doctors are unsure whether the magnets will have a long-term effect on his colon.
Kaela complained to Temu about the building block’s safety measures, but was’shocked’ at their response.
Kaela stated, “[Doctors] don’t know for certain how this will affect him in the long run.
“The small magnets harmed my son’s organs. They are not screwed in; they are simply thrown into these small cubes.
“They were extremely poorly constructed. He could easily have died that day. Temu claimed that they can guarantee that this item is safe, which it clearly is not.
“I don’t want money; I declined a credit note. I am astounded by their response.
“Temu won’t do anything. That is not good enough for me.
“There may be another child right now playing with these blocks and they might not see tomorrow because their mom and dad don’t know their child could swallow these small magnets.”
A Temu spokesperson stated, “We are deeply concerned to learn of this situation and extend our support to Gage and his family during this difficult time. We are actively investigating the case, and our customer service team is communicating with the family to offer assistance.
“The safety and well-being of our customers are Temu’s top priorities. Temu, a third-party marketplace, connects independent sellers with customers while requiring all merchants to follow applicable laws, regulations, and safety standards.
“In this case, the merchant provided an independent test report from SPG indicating that the product passed mechanical and physical inspections, toxic element tests, and the CPSIA labelling requirements for children’s products. The product packaging also contains a clear warning about choking hazards.
“While Temu does not manufacture or control the design of the products sold through our platform, we take such concerns very seriously. We are committed to working with the merchant and the family to find a satisfactory solution.
Temu maintains strict standards for products listed on the platform, actively monitors compliance, and promptly removes products that do not meet those standards.
