Trend and Fads: Silly Bandz

Take a look around you and find me a kid that doesn’t have those silly bandz half way up their arms in colorful neon sleeves. Every time I see a kid with these things on the only thing that comes to mind is when I was a teenager and had an armful of jelly bracelets. I had glitter and solids, neons and standard black.

Now these bands are nothing more than cheap rubberized plastic shapes of animals, religious symbols, people, automobiles. You name it there’s probably a silly band for it.

But what is it about these things that have kids so intrigued?

When I asked around the only answer I could uncover was they were cool. It didn’t matter that you would pay six dollars for a pack of twenty-four of cheap looking bracelets. It mattered that you had the coolest thing on the market since Pogs.

I know when I was addicted to my bracelets, I would trade them for one or two of what my friends had so then I had new bracelets. The idea is the same thing, kids trading these things so they “fit in.” This is a good way for germs to spread and God knows what else.

I used to take my bracelets off weekly and clean them in hot soapy water and then spray them with lysol until they were clean enough for me to be happy. My bracelets also didn’t get tangled or tighten around my wrist.

Such isn’t the case with these silly bandz. Bands can and will become a tangled mess of rubbery plastic that looks like a melted crayon mixed with string cheese. I read a small post on Facebook that showed what could happen with these Silly Bandz. Needless to say this picture disturbed me enough to blog about it as my way to spreading the word to make sure that these alleged toys bracelets aren’t put off the market as a hazard for something that can be prevented.

This picture came with the warn that said: “ATTENTION ALL PARENTS AND ALL THOSE WHO WEAR SILLYBANDS….. There is a new rule that kids MUST take their sillybands off to sleep, swim and bathe!!! This a little boy I know who told his Dad that his wrist hurt and when he removed the sillybands, this was underneath and they were embedded in his arm!!!”

Yes this alarmed me. There were a few comments under it stating that children were made to take them off because their skin was starting to swell. This could easily be prevented. Parents, make your kids take these bands off at night time, wash them in hot soapy water at least once a week, if not more. Also make sure they don’t wear them six inches past their wrist. The last thing we need is a child losing their arm because of negligence to these potentially dangerous trinkets.

Obviously, I’m not telling anyone how to raise their kids. Just sending out a warning to those I know love those cheesy shaped bracelets (of which I own 2 of.)

As it states on the website

7. I heard Silly Bandz cut off circulation, is my arm going to fall off from wearing Silly Bandz?

If you wrap anything too tight around your arm it will cut off circulation. Most shapes of Silly Bandz are made to wear very big like a bracelet. When you put them on your wrist and you see the little bends like they are trying to take shape, that means they are loose and not cutting off anything. Silly Bandz are made larger than other brands and most of the styles wear loose on adults. But use some common sense, we don’t know the magic number but if you put too many on it is going to hurt!

So please take extra care when allowing your children to wear these playful and neat bracelets. Use common sense if it seems too tight then it could be a danger.

Keep it real and rockin’
<3

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