How decorating for Christmas sends people to the ER
Lights, trees and visiting Santa are all potential hazards
Holiday season revelers beware. Lights, ornaments and Christmas trees may land you in the emergency room.
More than an estimated 173,000 people in the United States were injured by Christmas trees, lights and other holiday-related decorations from 2007 to 2016. Even visiting Santa resulted in an estimated 277 children being injured, scientists report online November 28 in Advances in Integrative Medicine. Researchers in Australia and Germany extrapolated from injury reports collected by hospitals that are part of the U.S. National Electronic Injury Surveillance System to estimate the number of Christmas-related injuries nationwide during the 10-year period.
Among the holiday hazards: