Balloons are bright, colorful, exciting, and fun to play with. Balloons also have the potential to be dangerous. Almost anything, if used improperly, can be dangerous and balloons are no exception. In the many years that I have been working with balloons, I have never seen, caused, or received a balloon-related injury that required medical treatment.

The only injury I recall is when I was doing a clown act, a balloon popped while I was blowing it up and a piece of it caught me in the eye. I shed a few tears (while smiling for the kids) and my eye was sore for about a half an hour. The truth is that it really hurt but I was not about to let that show. I’m not sure why that balloon blew up and went into so many pieces, but it is the only one that has ever done that.

Balloon accidents are rare. I would like to quote some actual statistics but have not been able to find any reliable sources. The numbers seem to vary according to who is doing the quoting. I am including this page only to warn you of some things that could happen. If I don’t mention it, it does not mean that it can not happen --- only that I didn’t think of it when I was writing.

Choking: Balloons are made of rubber. If you were to put a balloon over your mouth and breathe in (please DO NOT try this!) you would find out rather quickly that you could not breathe through your mouth. That is the same think that would happen if a large enough piece of balloon became lodged in your throat. The only time you should have a balloon in your mouth is when you are blowing it up (unless you use a pump). Encourage children and adults not to put the balloon in their mouths. I make it a policy not to give animal balloons to children that are under age 3. If the parent complains, I make a “big deal” out of giving the balloon to the parent.

Flying debris: Balloons do break – that is a fact. Get an animal balloon, blow it up, and pop it. Now look at the pieces. If it is a good quality balloon there will be mostly large pieces. It is possible that one of these pieces could hit you or somebody watching you. You can’t keep the balloon from popping, but can take some steps to protect yourself and others. I suggest holding the balloon slightly away from your body and below mid-chest level when twisting. It is also a good idea to keep the people watching you about an arm’s length away.

Self-inflicted: Animal balloons are not easy to blow up. If you are inflating them by mouth and it hurts – STOP! There is no shame in using a pump to blow up the balloons.

A final note about safety: The “dangers” I have mentioned are not intended to scare anyone away from balloons. They are discussed here briefly to make the reader aware of what could happen. As with all things, be sure to use a little common sense when working with balloons.