Australian pediatricians have swallowed Lego heads to assess their dangerousness for children.
Being a scientist is not always easy and sometimes you have to know how to be your own guinea pig. In any case, this is the position adopted by Australian researchers from the University of Melbourne. Obsessed with one question: “How long does it take for our body to evacuate Lego pieces?”, they decided to get to the bottom of it and conduct the experiment on themselves. This very serious study was published in the journal Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health.
We’ve finally answered the burning question – how long does it take for an ingested lego head to pass?
THIS is dedication to paediatrics – but it was worth it to advance science and paediatric emergency care.https://t.co/tZ4b9Yo8Kf pic.twitter.com/Nda7rqs7Zl
—Tessa Davis (@TessaRDavis) November 23, 2018
Less than two days on average
The objective sought in this surprising study was to measure the degree of danger that Lego represents for children who may be tempted to swallow their toys. The longer it takes for the body to reject them, the greater the health risk.
Six pediatricians participated in the experiment and each swallowed a Lego head. Moreover, none of them had previously undergone gastrointestinal surgery or had an aversion to research in feces. The time measured was that between the moment when the object was ingested and the moment when the object was found in the stools of the paediatricians.
Supporting video
Result: It took an average of 1.7 days for participants to expel the Lego heads. Except for a pediatrician who, two weeks after ingesting Lego’s head, still hadn’t found it. The researchers concluded that swallowing Lego does not present a major danger. However, Dr Andrew Tagg, one of the pediatricians involved in the study, cautioned parents: “While the majority of objects that children swallow pass, some can be dangerous and parents should remain vigilant. .”
Aware of the unusual nature of their study, the researchers filmed their experience where we see them, each in turn, ingesting a Lego head with varying degrees of pleasure. History also, perhaps, to show that this is not a joke but a real experience.
Scientists have also published a series of questions answers on how the experience went, concerned about maximum transparency.
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