Boy, five, undergoes emergency surgery to have appendix removed after swallowing 52 magnetic toy beads that left him in severe pain

• Jude Foley, five, had the magnetic beads removed by emergency surgery 
• His appendix was removed and his bowel cut in five places to extract the beads
• He was in theatre for seven hours and stayed in hospital for 14 days to recover
• Mother Lyndsey, 34, said: ‘Infection was spreading… he was getting poisoned’

A five-year-old boy is lucky to be alive after swallowing 52 magnets – and his mother is warning other parents after her son nearly died after swallowing the toy.

Jude Foley, five, from Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales, had the magnetic beads removed by emergency surgery after putting the toy in his mouth.

He underwent emergency surgery to remove his appendix and he had his bowel cut in five places where the magnets were trapped. 

His mother Lyndsey Foley, 34, became worried when Jude started to be sick over an eight-week period in the summer but otherwise seemed fine.

Jude Foley, five, from Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales, had the magnetic beads removed by emergency surgery after putting the toy in his mouth

Jude’s Mother Lyndsey Foley had bought the magnetic beads as a gift for her older daughter Poppy, eight, and had no idea if Jude swallowed several in one go or over a period of weeks

He was taken to hospital in severe pain in August but blood tests and an exam revealed nothing wrong.

However an X-ray on Jude’s stomach managed to detect the bead magnets. 

Ms Foley said: ‘The doctor thought that he was lying on a necklace at first but upon looking at it, I knew straight away that it was these beads.

‘Then within five minutes the doctors were arranging for an ambulance to take us down to the Children’s Hospital in Cardiff.

‘We got blue lighted down. I started to panic. It was only then that I realised how serious it was.’

An X-ray on Jude’s stomach managed to detect the bead magnets

Ms Foley had bought the magnetic beads as a gift for her older daughter Poppy, eight, and had no idea if Jude swallowed several in one go or over a period of weeks.

She said: ‘The surgeon said if I hadn’t brought him in when I did, it could have been fatal.

‘Due to the nature of the bowel and the force of the beads, it was tearing holes in his bowel which was causing his bowel to leak so an infection was spreading through his body. He was getting poisoned.’

Jude was in theatre for seven hours and unable to eat anything for a week following the surgery with doctors keeping in him hospital for 14 days.

Ms Foley said: ‘He was in pain. It was traumatic for him. It was horrible for me because I couldn’t give him a cwtch (cuddle) because he was hooked up to so many pipes.

‘I am very lucky Jude has no long-term health affects, but the surgeon did warn us that he may have had a colostomy bag for life or he could have been on monthly vitamin injections because of the shortness of the bowel.’

Ms Foley now wants to warn other parents over the dangers the toys pose after Jude was left with a five-inch scar.

She said: ‘If you’ve got these beads at home, remove them. They are so dangerous.

‘I still have that guilt, thinking what I put my child though or what could have been, how his life could have changed through me purchasing a toy that you think is safe. I never would have thought the damage it would have caused.

‘Jude has learnt his lesson now – don’t put anything in your mouth. And me, as a parent, I am more aware of what I am buying.’

Jude was in theatre for seven hours and unable to eat anything for a week following the surgery with doctors keeping in him hospital for 14 days

He underwent emergency surgery to remove his appendix and cut his bowel in five places where the magnets were trapped

Ms Foley now wants to warn other parents over the dangers the toys pose after Jude was left with a five-inch scar. She said: ‘If you’ve got these beads at home, remove them. They are so dangerous’

Health chiefs also want parents to be aware of potentially dangerous toys.

Sarah Jones, consultant in environmental public health at Public Health Wales, said: ‘We are asking parents to think carefully before buying products containing magnets and button batteries for children.

‘Mini magnet toys don’t make good stocking fillers. They should always be stored out of the reach of small children.

‘Similar dangers come from children swallowing button batteries too.

‘Parents should make sure the button battery compartment is properly closed and secure on all toys before giving them to children.’

In October, a mother joined the NHS in calling for tiny magnets to be banned after her 14-year-old daughter accidentally swallowed them whilst doing a TikTok trend and risked internal organ damage. 

In February last year, a 12-year-old schoolboy had to be given a life-saving operation after he swallowed 54 magnets. 

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