Mother issues urgent warning as her toddler is rushed to hospital with a suspected ‘perforated intestine’ – after playing with popular toy

A mother has issued a chilling warning to other parents as her three-year-old was rushed to hospital with a suspected ‘perforated intestine’ after playing with a popular toy at home.

Blossom, from the UK, took to TikTok to reveal just how close her son William came to a life-threatening medical emergency from swallowing some magnets that came with a set of building blocks for children.

The toddler had been putting together the pieces inspired by the video game Minecraft – which had been bought on the Chinese online store Temu – and was taken to A&E. 

In the clip, which has now racked up 130,000 views, Blossom urged: ‘Consider this a public safety video.’

‘Last week our three-year-old managed to swallow two tiny magnets while playing with what we assumed to be a completely safe toy,’ she continued.

‘I knew it was something that needed to be checked immediately, but I didn’t realise until we got to the hospital quite how dangerous the situation was.’

There, doctors quickly explained that swallowing multiple magnets is far more serious than ingesting other small objects. 

Once inside the body, the magnets can attract to each other from different parts of the digestive tract, pinching internal tissue, cutting off blood supply, and in severe cases, causing perforations to the intestine or bowel. 

Luckily, William’s X-ray showed that the magnets, which were attached, had already gone past his stomach and the tot was out of the danger zone, meaning he just had to wait for it to pass naturally. 

‘We are so lucky that our little boy didn’t have any lasting damage to his insides,’ Blossom added.

‘So please check your toys. Be aware because understanding the dangers of things and knowing what to do when accidents happen is just as important as preventing the accidents from happening.’

The mother also said that with her son approaching his fourth birthday, she had believed the biggest risks from small parts and choking hazards were largely behind them. 

However the incident has served as a harsh reminder that even older toddlers are not immune to the dangers of some toys.   

She captioned the video: ‘We were so lucky with our experience, but not every child is.

‘Accidents happen to the best of us, but it’s so important to know what to do when you’re in a dangerous situation. 

‘Luckily, the magnets that William had swallowed were attached, and remained intact all the way through his system, but if they hadn’t been, this could have ended very differently. 

‘If there’s any positives to this scary situation, it’s to spread some awareness to other families, who may not be aware of how dangerous magnets can be.’

Many rushed to the comments with their own thoughts and others thanked Blossom for raising awareness.

‘So glad he’s ok,’ one shared. ‘Please write a complaint to the toy company if they fell off a toy, they can pull them from the shelves and do more safety tests on them before they’re released again.’

Another asked: ‘How did you know he had swallowed it xx’

Blossom replied: ‘I heard him gag/cough and when I asked him if he was okay he said he accidentally swallowed something.’ 

‘This happened to a child I babysit for at school,’ one also penned.

‘He ended up in intensive care. Every time I warn people about these unregulated unchecked toys on TikTok shop I get told I’m overreacting.’

‘Definitely not overreacting,’ Blossom said. ‘It never occurred to me to check the safety rating before buying these, big lesson learned.’

‘My daughter has this toy, in the bin it goes,’ a comment read. ‘Thank you for raising awareness’.

The Daily Mail Online has reached out to Temu for comment.