Tide Pods

Last updated
Tide Pods
Tide detergent logo.svg
Logo of the Tide brand
Product type laundry detergent pod
Owner Procter & Gamble
Country United States
Introduced2012;12 years ago (2012)
Related brands Tide & Ariel
MarketsInternational (but not worldwide).
An individual Tide Pod Tide Pod (29694766644).jpg
An individual Tide Pod

Tide Pods (stylized Tide PODS) are a line of laundry detergent pods from Procter & Gamble under the Tide brand.

Contents

History

Procter & Gamble originally created laundry pods when they launched Salvo powder detergent tablets, later disappearing from the market in 1978. [1]

In 2012, Procter & Gamble launched Tide Pods. [2]

Consumption

A container of Tide Pods from 2012. The plastic container was later made opaque to reduce the chance of the product being mistaken for candy. Tide Pods Laundry Detergent Capsules (8422844630).jpg
A container of Tide Pods from 2012. The plastic container was later made opaque to reduce the chance of the product being mistaken for candy.

Concern has been raised over children accidentally consuming Tide Pods, as its appearance and packaging design can have the same appeal to a child as hard candy with patterned designs, and be confused as such. [3] In 2012, in response to a child swallowing Tide Pods, Procter & Gamble said they would make this product more difficult to open by adding a double latch to the lid, and have also re-focused their advertising to make clear the product should be out of a child's reach at all times. The packaging was also changed to an opaque orange rather than the original clear plastic gumball machine-type presentation to make them look less enticing. [4]

Ingestion of pods can lead to death in some cases. [5]

"Tide Pod Challenge"

Beginning in late 2017 a viral Internet trend, called the "Tide Pod Challenge", emerged on Twitter and various other social media websites, in which participants intentionally ingest detergent pods. [6] Several children and teens have been injured, some severely, from this intentional consumption. [7] The challenge (and subsequent meme) were popularized on Twitter and several people have eaten Tide Pods on camera. [8] One company began making edible replica "pods" and several internet personalities have posted about making edible "Tide Pods". [9]

Tide later partnered with American football player Rob Gronkowski, having him issue the message: "What the heck is going on, people? Use Tide Pods for washing. Not eating. Do not eat." [10]

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Bleach activators are compounds that allow a lower washing temperature than would be required otherwise to achieve the full activity of bleaching agents in the wash liquor. Bleaching agents, usually peroxides, are usually sufficiently active only at 60 °C and up. With bleach activators, this activity can be achieved at lower temperatures. Bleach activators are included in some laundry detergent powders, some laundry additive powders, and a few laundry additive pods. They are not included in any liquid laundry detergents. Bleach activators react with hydrogen peroxide in aqueous solution to form peroxy acids. Peroxy acids are more active bleaches than hydrogen peroxide at lower temperatures (<60 °C), but are too unstable to be stored in their active form, and hence must be generated in situ.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Consumption of Tide Pods</span> Hazardous practice and Internet meme

Like most detergent products, Tide Pods, a laundry detergent pod sold by Procter & Gamble (P&G) since 2012, can be deadly if ingested. Media reports have discussed how children and those with dementia could mistake laundry pods for candy and endanger their health or life by consuming them, and they were named an emerging health risk by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2012. Between 2012 and 2013, poison control centers reported over 7,000 cases of young children eating laundry pods, and ingestion of laundry pods produced by P&G had resulted in six deaths by 2017. In response to the dangers, P&G changed Tide Pod containers to an opaque design, introduced warning labels, and added a bitter-tasting chemical to the pod contents.

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References

  1. "Unilever airs plans to introduce laundry detergent in tablet form". Deseret News . 2000-07-27. Archived from the original on 2021-01-03.
  2. "Laundry detergent pods remain a health hazard". Consumer Reports. March 2013. Archived from the original on 12 November 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
  3. Jaslow, Ryan (2012-10-19). "CDC warns laundry detergent pods pose health risk". CBS News . Archived from the original on 2014-08-27. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  4. Wohl, Jessica (2012-05-25). "UPDATE 2-Tide to change Pods lid over child safety concerns". Reuters . Archived from the original on 2015-12-30. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
  5. Interlandi, Jeneen (2018-01-12). "What Eating a Laundry Pod Can Do to You". Consumer Reports . Archived from the original on 2018-01-13. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  6. Kircher, Madison Malone (December 28, 2017). "Please Don't Eat a Tide Pod, No Matter What the Memes Say". new york . Retrieved January 3, 2018.
  7. Carroll, Linda (2016-04-25). "More children harmed by eating laundry pods, new report finds". TODAY.com. Archived from the original on 2016-04-26. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  8. MacGuill, Dan (2018-01-12). "FACT CHECK: Is the 'Tide Pod Challenge' a Real Thing?". Snopes . Archived from the original on 2022-06-18. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  9. Colburn, Randall (2018-01-10). "People have resorted to making edible Tide laundry pods to stop you from eating the real ones". The A.V. Club . Archived from the original on 2018-01-10. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  10. Tsuji, Alysha (2018-01-12). "Rob Gronkowski tells everyone not to eat Tide Pods". USA Today . Archived from the original on 2018-01-14. Retrieved January 13, 2018.