What everyday objects can pose a danger to our health and safety?

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SUMMARY

This discussion highlights various everyday objects that pose unexpected health and safety risks. Participants identified specific items such as Tootsie Roll Pops and Jolly Rancher Hard candy, which can cause oral injuries, and paper, which is notorious for paper cuts. Other hazardous items mentioned include paper shredders, Legos, and kitchen peppers, emphasizing the potential dangers that often go unnoticed. The conversation underscores the importance of awareness regarding seemingly harmless objects in our daily lives.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of common household items and their potential hazards
  • Knowledge of basic safety practices in everyday environments
  • Familiarity with food safety and handling, particularly with spicy ingredients
  • Awareness of first aid measures for minor injuries like cuts and burns
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the safety protocols for using kitchen appliances like paper shredders and coffee makers
  • Learn about the health risks associated with consuming hard candies and other choking hazards
  • Investigate the effects of common allergens found in household items, such as pollen from peppers
  • Explore first aid techniques for treating cuts, burns, and other minor injuries caused by everyday objects
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for parents, caregivers, safety professionals, and anyone interested in enhancing their awareness of everyday hazards and improving safety practices in their homes and workplaces.

~christina~
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I find that many objects are hazardous. (they seem quite harmless until..)

For example:

Food category

Tootsie Roll Pops => I find that, after licking the lollipop a few times, I always get shards of the candy in my tongue.
Jolly Rancher Hard candy => A swallowing risk is involved when you melt the candy until it's small and thin. Shards of the candy can become embedded in tongue as well, I find.

Everyday items

Paper=> Paper cuts anyone?

Can anyone think of anymore hazardous items in our everyday lives that seem harmless enough?
 
Biology news on Phys.org
air ... LOL!

and everything that you can touch :)
 
- You'll kill us... with a soup cup?
- Tea, actually.
- What's that?
- I'll kill you with my teacup.
 
Ones own teeth, i am all ways bite ing my tongue.
 
Paper cuts will be the death of me

Twice today! *ouch*

:)
 
~christina~ said:
Can anyone think of anymore hazardous items in our everyday lives that seem harmless enough?

Paper shredders. Never wear a tie around those things. A person's head will never fit down the little slot, but most people panic anyway. The panic attack can result in serious neck strain.

Legos, especially on the stairs ... especially if walking barefoot down the stairs with a cup of coffee.

Complex math problems. They're always fun until someone loses an i.
 
Crisps/potato chips are another, get a sliver of one wedged between your teeth and it is most annoying.

Stop eating candy christina, it will ruin your complexion.
 
Atoms. One decayed once, and my cat died.
 
I have a healthy respect for the pretty little peppers. My kitchen is a haz-mat zone whenever I make habanero relish. The simplest little things, like absent-mindedly scratching an itch can result in surprises.

rinsedhabaneros.jpg
 
  • #10
turbo-1 said:
habanero relish. The simplest little things, like absent-mindedly scratching an itch can result in surprises.
You're lucky it's just an itch.
How do you tell an organic chemist?
They are the ones that wash their hands BEFORE they go to the bathroom.
 
  • #11
BobG said:
Paper shredders. Never wear a tie around those things. A person's head will never fit down the little slot, but most people panic anyway.
Uh, I'm not sure that people actually fear having their head chopped into confetti (though I'll bet a shredded lip or nose might not be so much fun, even if unlikely).

However, I do think they quite reasonably fear being choked by their own tie.
 
  • #12
jimmysnyder said:
Atoms. One decayed once, and my cat died.

:biggrin:


:rolleyes:
How do you know it wasn't already dead? :smile:
 
  • #13
mgb_phys said:
You're lucky it's just an itch.
How do you tell an organic chemist?
They are the ones that wash their hands BEFORE they go to the bathroom.
When I was a process chemist in a Kraft pulp mill, I was VERY religious about the before-and-after hand-washing. It's easy to lose sight of the fact that when you are handling extracts from the system (black liquor from the digester, for instance) you are dealing with some extremely complex stuff, the health effects of which have never been studied in depth.
 
  • #14
~christina~ said:
Can anyone think of anymore hazardous items in our everyday lives that seem harmless enough?

Kittens. They are ankle-biting demons from hell.
 
  • #15
DaveC426913 said:
:biggrin:


:rolleyes:
How do you know it wasn't already dead? :smile:

Had to look ... Ya just had to look. :smile:


You cat killer you :biggrin:
 
  • #16
turbo-1 said:
I have a healthy respect for the pretty little peppers. My kitchen is a haz-mat zone whenever I make habanero relish. The simplest little things, like absent-mindedly scratching an itch can result in surprises.

When I was young, my grandfather was a pepper enthusiast and had quite a few different types in his back yard. One day I decided to check out a few of the peppers, so I proceeded hold a few of them and spin them around while still on their stems to get an up close look. Well, I was pretty allergic to pollen at the time, so at one point I gave both of my eyes a pretty good rub. WHAM! I don't think I've ever experienced a pain like that before. I remember laying on a couch for hours with a wet rag on my eyes, crying out because they stung so bad.

I literally hated peppers up until my early 20's where I, out of nowhere, seemed to develop a taste for them. Now I just about can't eat anything without straight peppers or at least pepper seasoning on it. The hotter the better!
 
  • #17
Alfi said:
Had to look ... Ya just had to look. :smile:


You cat killer you :biggrin:
Had to look and collapse kitty's wave-form...bad.
 
  • #18
B. Elliott said:
I literally hated peppers up until my early 20's where I, out of nowhere, seemed to develop a taste for them. Now I just about can't eat anything without straight peppers or at least pepper seasoning on it. The hotter the better!
Visit the "turbo-1's hot stuff" thread and get the recipe for making habanero relish. I'm about the only person who'll eat it apart from my brother and a neighbor - both chili-heads. Math Jeans swears by it and Astronuc likes it, too. You can make it in small batches and refrigerate it, or make larger batches like I do and process the canning jars in a boiling-water bath.
 
Last edited:
  • #19
My son once accidentally shut his wifes cat in their bottom freezer refrigerator.

They found the frosted cat after hearing a strange muffled sound coming from the fridge.
 
  • #20
The little heating element on coffee makers stays hot for quite some time after it is shut off.
 
  • #21
The stainless steel basket on my espresso maker is heavy and after a mug's worth of boiling water and saturated steam has passed through it - it's a good idea to put it in the sink to cool off before scooping out the espresso grounds.
 
  • #22
edward said:
My son once accidentally shut his wifes cat in their bottom freezer refrigerator.

They found the frosted cat after hearing a strange muffled sound coming from the fridge.

This shouldn't be funny...

:smile: :smile: :smile:
 
  • #23
turbo-1 said:
Visit the "turbo-1's hot stuff" thread and get the recipe for making habanero relish. I'm about the only person who'll eat it apart from my brother and a neighbor - both chili-heads. Math Jeans swears by it and Astronuc likes it, too. You can make it in small batches and refrigerate it, or make larger batches like I do and process the canning jars in a boiling-water bath.

I'm going to have to make some and try it out. Just yesterday I picked a batch of plums and figs of our trees out back, so I've been on a bit of a home produce kick since then.:smile: The apples on our five-in-one apple tree are starting look nice, but not as big as expected. A friend suggested going ahead and pulling half of them to help the remainders grow better... that and something about it helping the overall tree grow larger next year.
 
  • #24
B. Elliott said:
I'm going to have to make some and try it out. Just yesterday I picked a batch of plums and figs of our trees out back, so I've been on a bit of a home produce kick since then.:smile: The apples on our five-in-one apple tree are starting look nice, but not as big as expected. A friend suggested going ahead and pulling half of them to help the remainders grow better... that and something about it helping the overall tree grow larger next year.
Another thing you should do is prune off all the sun-suckers - new growth that is vegetative, but did not blossom this year. They generally shoot up vertically, and they can shade other more productive branches that are not sapping the tree's energy with rapid growth-spurts. Good productive apple trees are usually quite "open" and are not overly leafy with new growth.

When I thin apples, I pick the apples that are the smallest, or that seem to have any damage or deformity first. Don't discard them near your trees because they can be a source of insect damage/disease. If they're not ripe enough to be usable, I like to run them through a food processor and dump them in the compost bins.
 
  • #25
DaveC426913 said:
Uh, I'm not sure that people actually fear having their head chopped into confetti (though I'll bet a shredded lip or nose might not be so much fun, even if unlikely).

However, I do think they quite reasonably fear being choked by their own tie.

Then ties should definitely be in the list. The only thing they're useful as are bibs for the sloppy men who would otherwise spill food on their shirts. :biggrin:

Ivan Seeking said:
Kittens. They are ankle-biting demons from hell.
:smile: Does she do the sneak attack from behind the sofa trick? I STILL get that one every once in a while.

I'll include cat TOYS on the list too. Similar to the dangers of Legos.
 
  • #26
Moonbear said:
I'll include cat TOYS on the list too. Similar to the dangers of Legos.
No need to include ferret toys. Ferrets put away their toys after playing with them, stashed in "secret" locations. They LOVE hiding stuff.
 
  • #27
Moonbear said:
:smile: Does she do the sneak attack from behind the sofa trick? I STILL get that one every once in a while.

At this point, if I don't have shoes on, it is virtually impossible to walk without snagging a very sharp foot attachment. And what absolutely cracks me up is the aggression. You would think that my foot is the most terrible thing on the planet, and that it MUST die.
 
  • #28
Ivan Seeking said:
You would think that my foot is the most terrible thing on the planet, and that it MUST die.

Does she hold it with her front paws, bite your ankle, and kick with her back legs...? That's what my Sweet Miss Phoebe does...I love her so much :!) !
 
  • #29
At first I though it is Evo related thread...

Open door can be a killer thing. In the dark, when you think you are just moving parallel to the wall and you hit door edge with your head. I broke my teeth last year this way.

Well, I broke this teeth over 20 years ago, so this time it was more pricey than painful.
 
  • #30
Dangerous items: shoes, pillows, furniture, wall corners, doors...
 

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