Do You Ever Wonder . . .
About the people who write product warnings? Consider the things they tell us not to swallow:
- (man I was going to try that!)
- (um, WHAT?)
- tooth whitening gels
Okay, on that last one I have a real question: How am I supposed to not swallow for 20 minutes while stuff fizzes out of a plastic tray into my mouth?
The answer, of course, is that I’m not. Package inserts are often more about reducing liability than educating the consumer. Case in point? Printing “may irritate eyes” on a can of pepper spray, and the “warnings” about gum irritation that come with tooth whiteners. If they really wanted to educate consumers, the label would say:
WARNING: This product is likely to contain coal tar, fluoride, aspartame, aluminum and benzene and has demonstrated acute toxicological effects in rats, including but not limited to labored breathing, bloody urine, infertility and incontinence. (, )