Consumers should immediately stop using this magnetic game due to ingestion risks, the agency warns

NEW YORK (AP) — The Consumer Product Safety Commission is warning people to immediately throw away a magnetic toy because it poses a serious ingestion risk to children.

The CPSC issued a warning Thursday that “magnetic chess sets” sold by Chinese seller JOMO contain magnets that do not comply with U.S. federal safety regulations. As a result, the “unsecured, hazardous magnets pose a risk of serious injury or death,” according to the warning.

The CPSC said it issued a notice of violation to JOMO, but the company has not agreed to recall its magnetic chess sets or offer a fix. The commission urged people to stop using the set and throw it away immediately.

According to the CPSC, the sets were sold online at walmart.com in a blue box with the word “Magnetic” on the front and back. They included about 20 loose black magnets, but no chess pieces, despite the marketing.

It’s unclear exactly when and for how long the games were sold. A CPSC spokesperson said the commission couldn’t provide more information because JOMO is not cooperating.

Experts have long noted the serious health dangers associated with ingesting magnets, especially for children. According to the CPSC, when powerful magnets are ingested, they can attract each other or another metal object in the body and become lodged in the digestive system, which can lead to blockage, infection, blood poisoning or death.

In total, the CPSC estimates that a total of 2,400 magnet ingestions were treated in hospitals each year between 2017 and 2021. The commission said it is aware of eight deaths related to these ingestions between 2005 and 2021, including two outside the United States.