Under Armour recalls collections after watchdog warns 'serious injuries'

Under Armour have recalled almost 20 lines of sneakers across Australia after a watchdog issued a ‘serious injury’ warning.

Under Armour has recalled almost 20 varieties of sneakers across Australia after a watchdog issued a ‘serious injury’ warning about the Bluetooth pods in the shoes.

According to Product Safety Australia, the shoes were sold without adequate warning about the ‘button battery’ in the right shoe. Although sealed inside a pod and embedded in the shoe body itself, the batteries pose a serious risk to children specifically.

“If young children gain access to button batteries and ingest them, they are all likely to suffer internal burn injuries, which can result in serious injury or death,” the consumer organisation said in a statement. Along with this, the organisation also advised people to contact them for more information on button batteries and how to handle them safely.

Following the statement, Under Armour has recalled nearly 20 variations of shoes in the UA HOVR and the Flow Running Shoes series. A full list of the affected models is available here. According to the report, the shoes were on sale for two days towards the end of June.

Button batteries are small, round batteries found across a variety of electronic devices. When coming in contact with body fluids or secretions, the batteries produce a current that emits sodium hydroxide. Sodium Hydroxide is a corrosive substance – if stuck to an external spot on the body, it is likely to burn a hole through it and cause infections.

When ingested, the secretion of sodium hydroxide inside the body can cause serious illnesses and be fatal in some cases. Due to their size, the batteries might also get stuck inside the ear canal or nasal cavity, posing the risk of nasal/aural disabilities or permanent damage.