In response to Dr. Shell’s questions on the CPSC’s stance on charger safety, CPSC Press Secretary Patty Davis says “we say ‘unplug the charger when not in use’ every chance we get”. In consultation with their experts, Patty Davis goes on to say “our experts believe chargers have the ability to release a current when the USB portion is sucked on or is touched with metal”. And therefore, according to these experts “[i]t’s definitely not advisable to suck on the output of a USB charger that’s plugged in. … if the toddler persisted, they may eventually have a problem if the saliva started to contact internal parts at 120 V or touching the open output socket with something metal. Of course you never know with substandard units because they may not have the proper electrical isolation between the input and output and/or output protection. Just like with other products, it’s a good practice to buy listed chargers and unplug them when not in use.”
We have learned from Apple that 90% of the chargers listed on Amazon as Apple-branded are in fact knock-offs, and even Apple’s own customer support page warns users against prolonged skin contact and moist contact with the charger.
A Proactive Solution
The reality is while parents understand that there is a real hazard by leaving their chargers plugged in, they don’t take the steps to lessen the risk because it simply requires too much energy and lessens the convenience. And therefore there’s always that little bit of guilt whenever we plug our next electrical accessory in to our conveniently placed and readily available charger. WATCH YOUR MOUTH by Geddy’s Mom mitigates this risk (and this guilt) without compromising the convenience of having your charger readily available.
Contact us today to learn more about how you can protect your child from electrical shocks.