That viral NeeDoh microwave trick floating around social media just landed an 11-year-old Oklahoma City boy in the hospital with serious burns, according to his family and doctors.
The child, identified by his mother as Koltyn Preston, was badly injured after putting a NeeDoh gel-filled sensory toy into a microwave. When it heated up, hot gel burst from the toy and splattered across his face and neck, burning his skin. Hospital staff had to scrub the burns under anesthesia more than once, and medical providers say the case is a stark reminder of how quickly gel-filled toys can turn dangerous when exposed to high heat.
Koltyn told relatives the toy "wouldn't come off and it was burning" after he heated it, and his mother says she ran into the room after hearing him scream. Doctors at the treating hospital placed him under anesthesia twice to clean the wounds, kept him overnight, and have continued to see him for follow-up wound care. His mother also told reporters that a small safety warning on the product’s box was difficult to see because a large barcode covered part of it, as reported by News 9.
Manufacturer Adds Warnings, Presses Platforms To Pull Misuse Clips
Schylling, the Massachusetts-based company behind NeeDoh, says the squishy toys are meant only for room-temperature tactile play and are “not to be heated, frozen, or microwaved.” The company says it has since added clearer warnings to both its packaging and its online product listings. Schylling also told reporters it has worked with social media platforms to get videos taken down when they show people misusing the toys in ways like this microwave stunt. That guidance and the company’s response were detailed by Good Morning America.
Doctors Say This Is Not A One-Off Freak Accident
Burn specialists say Koltyn’s story fits a troubling pattern tied to a viral TikTok "microwave" hack involving squishy toys. Loyola Medicine’s burn center in Illinois reported treating multiple children who were burned after microwaving a NeeDoh, and physicians there have urged parents to get ahead of the trend by talking with kids about risky online challenges and so-called “hacks.” CBS Chicago has previously covered those earlier injuries and the hospital warnings.
What Parents Are Being Urged To Do
Safety experts are giving some straightforward advice: keep gel-filled squishy toys away from microwaves and ovens, closely supervise young children using them, and seek immediate medical care for any burns. Consumer Reports has called on the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to investigate potential chemical and burn risks from gel-filled sensory toys and to consider stronger labeling requirements and tighter retail controls. For now, manufacturers and hospitals are aligned on one simple rule: do not heat, freeze, or microwave NeeDohs, as detailed by Consumer Reports.
