Woman's injury raising questions about safety of reusable straws

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A woman's injury is raising questions about the safety of reusable straws after she says she swallowed a shard of glass from her favorite glass straw.

The woman, who goes by Breezie O'Brien on TikTok, issued the warning on social media from her hospital bed.

While she was lucky to avoid surgery, her story prompted many people on TikTok to throw out their glass straws.

Action News went to the experts at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia to see if this is warranted, or an overreaction to a freak accident.

"We do not see a lot of glass straw-related injuries in the pediatric ER," says Dr. Lauren VonHoltz, Pediatric Emergency Medicine Attending Physician at CHOP. "But we do see a lot of straw-related injuries. It could be metal straws, it could be regular plastic straws. Kids will put chopsticks in their mouths, and then as they're kind of walking or running around with them, then they fall, and it hits the back of their mouth."

The National Institute of Health says straw-related injuries are most common in kids three and under.

Dr. VonHoltz says minor injuries can be little cuts to the mouth, which heal quickly, but when the straw hits the back of the mouth hard, that's when it's time to go to the ER.

"The tonsils bleed a lot, and could have some more significant injury. And then also in the back of the mouth are some really large blood vessels," she says.

But Dr. VonHoltz warns there are more common dangers to be aware of this time of year, like kids ingesting those small batteries in toys, ornament hooks, and edibles that look like fruit snacks.