My baby swallowed a water bead and nearly died — parents should beware

A mom issued a warning over water beads when her infant daughter was left in a critical condition after accidentally ingesting a bead, which expanded once she swallowed it.

Folichia Mitchell initially purchased the Chuckle & Roar Ultimate Water Beads Kit from Target for her 8-year-old son in October, making sure that when he played with them they were out of reach from his younger siblings.

However, several days later, her 10-month-old daughter, Kennedy, became lethargic and started vomiting, with the concerned mom-of-four thinking she may be having a bad reaction to some food she’d eaten.

Concerned when her symptoms didn’t subside, Mitchell took Kennedy to a hospital on Nov. 1 — although she admitted that the possibility of her baby swallowing water beads never crossed her mind.

“We never saw her near them. Never saw her have one in her hand. Never saw her pick one up from the floor,” Mitchell told “Good Morning America.” “I was not worried about that at all. That never had crossed my mind the whole time that she was not feeling well and deteriorating.”

Kennedy was transported to a larger children’s hospital by ambulance, where doctors ran tests on the months-old baby before finding a large mass in her stomach.

Kennedy underwent surgery to remove the water bead at the beginning of November, although doctors found her intestines were already damaged.

Kennedy has since undergone four more surgeries due to infections she’s picked up from the blockage, with Mitchell telling “GMA” that the battle has been incredibly difficult — and doctors reportedly gave her daughter only a 50-50 chance of surviving the third operation. 

A month after swallowing the bead, Kennedy is still in the hospital with doctors unsure of both the long-term effects and when she’ll be discharged.

Mitchell has been sharing her terrifying experience to TikTok — with just one video alone clocking more than 1.5 million views — and warning parents that the beads, which have a recommended age of 4 and older, can be potentially fatal.

Water beads — which are made of superabsorbent polymers — can expand to the size of a tennis ball when exposed to water and cause intestinal blockage and damage, according to the National Capital Poison Center.