The fidget menace.

I don't want to seem like I'm on a death kick this week, even though it is the start of Lent tomorrow -- dust thou art and dust thou shalt become, you know. Which is why I don't dust. It could be a pal. Or someone great, like Solomon. Maybe Nebuchadnezzar! 

Never mind. The point is, we have been facing a terrible menace in this country for too long, and it's about time someone stood up and said it. I mean, of course, the fidget spinner.

I had no idea that fidget spinners could be deadly. Good thing the fad has dissipated somewhat since its high point in 2017. 

Sure, they look harmless enough. And who doesn't like to fidget? The fidget spinner supposedly relieves stress, helps with ADHD and even PTSD, is healthier than smoking or even nail-biting, and may aid with weight loss, and is only a little more annoying than tapping your feet or clicking a pen against your teeth. It's probably less annoying than cracking your knuckles, which for some bystanders is like nails on a blackboard x 2. 

But Google recently spat a story up at me that linked to this study from the Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, a study that found danger within those silly little trinkets.  

The fidget spinner is a relatively new popular toy commonly sold without warning labels regarding potential hazards including those related to button batteries.

The 2018 study profiles two cases of children swallowing the button batteries from fidget spinners. According to the National Capital Poison Center, we've had 65 fatalities from these batteries. So the real issue is those little batteries we find in all kinds of devices, from tiny flashlights to hearing aids. 

I suppose fidget spinners that contain batteries are no worse than other objects, except that people don't tend to see fidget spinners as something with which young children shouldn't play. 

Harmless? Hmm.

Recommendations for these tend to be for ages seven and up, regardless how juvenile they look.  

I think it's unlikely that they could be dangerous to an adult. You might be in more danger from cracking your knuckles -- not because it harms the joints, but because someone might freak out and attack you. 

Be careful out there. Everyone's on edge. Maybe we should do more doodling.