Surgeons Remove Up to 100 High-Power Temu Magnets from New Zealand Teenager’s Intestines

A 13-year-old boy in New Zealand required emergency surgery after swallowing up to 100 high-power magnets he had reportedly bought from the online retailer Temu.

Doctors reported in the New Zealand Medical Journal that an X-ray showed the tiny magnets had clumped together inside his intestines. These clumps were in four separate parts of his bowel, adhering to each other with immense magnetic force.

This pressure caused necrosis, or tissue death, in four areas of his small and large intestine. Surgeons had to operate to remove the dead tissue and retrieve the magnets. The boy was hospitalized for eight days.

The magnets involved were high-power neodymium magnets, which have been banned in New Zealand since 2013 due to their extreme danger if swallowed.

Doctors warned that these cases highlight the significant risk posed by international online marketplaces like Temu, which may not always comply with local safety requirements. Surgery for magnet ingestion can also lead to long-term complications like bowel obstruction.