A seven-year-old boy from Lincolnshire underwent emergency surgery after swallowing two powerful toy magnets, highlighting growing concerns over the dangers posed by magnetic products marketed for adults in homes with children. The incident came to light when his mother, Naomi Rivers, decided to speak out about her son’s traumatic experience in a bid to warn other families and prevent similar accidents.
The medical emergency unfolded when young Eli Jepson-Rivers, left temporarily unsupervised in his living room while watching television, heard an irresistible urge to experiment with the “Kluster” brand magnets. According to his mother, Eli’s curiosity led him to test how magnets would stick to different parts of his body, including his hands. Wanting to see if they would hold through saliva, he placed one magnet inside his mouth and the other on the outside. Suddenly, he lost control and swallowed them both.
Hearing Eli’s distress, Rivers rushed in, finding her son panicking and struggling to breathe. Expecting him to be sick, she guided him to the bathroom, only to be confronted by his fear-stricken confession: “I swallowed it.” Realising the gravity of the situation, Rivers immediately drove Eli to the local 24-hour urgent care centre at Grantham and District Hospital.
Medical staff responded rapidly given the serious hazards associated with swallowing multiple magnets. An x-ray quickly revealed that the magnets had already travelled to Eli’s stomach, clamped tightly together. Aware of the life-threatening possibilities if the magnets were to pull together across intestinal walls, doctors transferred him by ambulance to Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham for specialist intervention.
Multiple efforts were made to remove the magnets non-surgically. Doctors initially tried to encourage their passage with laxatives, and subsequently attempted removal with an endoscope. When these measures failed, and as concern mounted regarding potential intestinal damage, surgeons opted to perform open abdominal surgery. The magnets were eventually recovered, but not without difficulty—having become magnetised through different layers of tissue, the surgical team had to prise them apart to prevent further injury.
Recalling the ordeal, Rivers reflected: “It was every parent’s nightmare. I always feared choking, but you never expect this kind of danger from what seems an innocent game. Surgery took far longer than we anticipated; in the end Eli’s abdomen had to be opened by 10 centimetres. The magnets were so strong, even the surgeon struggled to separate them.”
Fortunately, Eli has since recovered and is back home with his family. However, the incident has prompted his mother to get rid of all magnetic toys in the house, and she is now urging other parents to review what items may be within children’s reach. “I thought I was helping by keeping him off screens and encouraging play, but these sorts of products are not as harmless as they look. My advice is simple: don’t allow small magnets near young children. And if the worst happens, seek medical help immediately—multiple swallowed magnets are extremely serious,” advised Rivers.
Addressing the incident, Borderline Editions—the manufacturer behind the Kluster game—stressed that their product is intended as a board game for players aged 14 and older, not as a toy for children. The packaging displays clear safety warnings about the dangers of ingestion and the associated choking hazard. A spokesperson noted, “This is the first case of its kind involving Kluster in six years on the market, but we cannot overemphasise the need for adults to follow these guidance and keep such items away from children.”
Magnetic toy-related injuries in children have been the subject of increasing warnings from health authorities in recent years, especially as high-strength magnets have become more widely available. Medical professionals have long cautioned that if more than one magnet is swallowed, they may attract each other through the intestinal wall, potentially cutting off blood supply, causing perforations, and posing a risk of life-threatening complications.
This case serves as a sobering reminder of the hidden hazards within everyday items not designed for children, as well as the enduring curiosity of young minds. By sharing their story, Eli and his mother hope to foster greater awareness and encourage other families to remain vigilant.