I received a few emails in the past week or so telling me to be on the look out for cheap shoes out of China. Stating these shoes sometimes contain a harmful chemical that can cause chemical burns. I, of course, didn’t believe what I received in a chain letter, regardless of the horrid pictures that were attached. After receiving a few different versions of this email, I decided to look into it. Guess what? It’s true!
Recently there have been several people that have gotten a chemical burn from cheap shoes, mainly flip flops. Back in 2007, FOX News reported that Wal-Mart sandals has caused at least 10 people to have severe chemical burns due to a reaction from the plastic. On June 5, 2009, NewsOn6.com reports a pair of adorable shoes left a young girl with chemical burns across her toes and instep after her grandmother bought them at Wal-Mart. Her feet were bright red all across the bottom and when she was taken to the emergency room, they diagnosed a chemical burn.
Chemical burns are not common in everyone. They are caused by an allergic reaction to a chemical used in the plastic of shoes. The problem is, you probably don’t know you have this allergy until it is too late. The chemical burns can take a number of different reactions, most commonly consisting of red blisters, eventually leading to cracking and bleeding. Although a pair of shoes may be “oh-so-cute” and “look how cheap they are!”, ask yourself if it is worth the possibility of blisters and bleeding feet. I would feel horrible putting my daughter in a cutesy pair of flip flops, just to find out later that day she had blisters all over her feet because of the cheap plastic.
