Aluminum Foil Wrapping Products
Twenty years of CPSC NEISS emergency-room records for this consumer product category, combined with demographic breakdowns, multi-year injury trends, and matching recall notices.
Containers & Packaging · CPSC Code 1139
Up 15% over 5 years
The verdict
Aluminum Foil Wrapping Products carry a danger score of 34/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 1,434 ER-treated injuries a year that are rising by about 15% over the last five years.
- 34/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 1,434
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 2.7%
- end in hospital admission
- 0-4
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 1139 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 34/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for aluminum foil wrapping products - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume1,434 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)2.7%
- Fatality rate0.06%
- 5-year trend+15%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Aluminum Foil Wrapping Products (CPSC product code 1139, in the Containers & Packaging category) generate an estimated 1,434 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 28,684 ER-treated injuries across the 20-year span from 2005 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 34/100 for this category (low risk), combining raw injury volume, demographic reach, severity of outcome, and multi-year trend. The five-year trajectory shows that injury counts are rising by about 15% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2024 (2,305 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2007 (758 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for aluminum foil wrapping products is laceration to the finger, accounting for approximately 5,927 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by ingestion to the internal (5,411 cases). The 0-4 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 7,633 cases over the NEISS window, and females appear slightly more often than the opposite sex in that cohort. Severity outcomes from the NEISS disposition field show that 2.7% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer, and a small fraction (0.06%) result in fatality.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 4 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how aluminum foil wrapping products fail in real households. Every figure on this page comes from CPSC-published data: NEISS projects national estimates from a probability sample of about 100 U.S. hospital emergency departments, while SaferProducts.gov collects voluntary reports from consumers, manufacturers, and clinicians. The danger score, trend indicators, and demographic breakdowns update automatically when CPSC releases a new yearly NEISS file, which is why this page is dated 2024-12-31. For regulatory context, consult CPSC recall notices and the SaferProducts.gov public database linked below.
Annual Injury Estimates (2005–2024)
Source: CPSC NEISS national estimates CPSC NEISS national estimates Injuries represent ER-treated cases only
Who Gets Injured?
| Age Group | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-4 | 3,398 | 4,235 | |
| 5-14 | 2,004 | 1,125 | |
| 15-24 | 1,617 | 1,549 | |
| 25-34 | 1,529 | 1,729 | |
| 35-44 | 1,235 | 1,444 | |
| 45-54 | 1,370 | 1,548 | |
| 55-64 | 661 | 1,548 | |
| 65-74 | 708 | 1,510 | |
| 75+ | 457 | 941 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Finger | Laceration | |
| Internal | Ingestion | |
| Face | Foreign Body | |
| Internal | Aspiration | |
| Ear | Foreign Body | |
| Hand | Laceration | |
| Eyeball | Contusions, Abr. | |
| All Parts Body | Poisoning | |
| Finger | Burns, Thermal | |
| Lower Arm | Laceration | |
| Finger | Burn, Scald | |
| Hand | Burns, Thermal | |
| Mouth | Foreign Body | |
| Face | Laceration | |
| Foot | Laceration |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
35YOM W/H/O PRIOR SUBSTANCE ABUSE FOR EVAL OF POSSIBLE DRUG EXPOSURE.PT HAPPENED TO PICK UP THE FOIL&STRAWS HIS GF WAS USING TO SMOKE W/&SHE WAS LIKE SLEEPING&TWITCHING&STUFF,&THEN I FELT LIKE I WAS TWITCHING&SLEEPING&MAYBE THERE WAS FENTANYL IN IT. LEFT AMA. DX: DRUG USE
27 YOF SWALLOWED A FOIL WITH 1-1.5 GRAMS OF FENTANYL PRIOR TO ARREST. DX: NO DX, PT ELOPED.
61 YOF WAS HANDLING HOT POTATOES WRAPPED IN FOIL OFF THE GRILL FOR 5 SECONDS ON MONDAY AND WAS BURNED. DX: FINGER INFECTION.
26 YOM WITH LACERATION TO LEFT INDEX FINGER. HE WAS OPENING A FREEZER WHEN A *** SIZE ALUMINUM FOIL FELL ON TOP FROM THE TOP OF THE FRIDGE AND WHEN HE TRIED TO CATCH IT, CUT HIS FINGER. DX LACERATION LEFT INDEX FINGER
22 YOF REPORTS SWALLOWING 3 GRAMS OF FENTANYL, WRAPPED IN ALUMINUM FOIL. DX: PURPOSEFUL NON SUICIDAL DRUG INGESTION.
24 YOM SUSPECTED INTOXICATION AFTER BEING FOUND DOWN IN A ***'S BATHROOM. THEY REPORT THAT THERE WAS A PIPE IN FOIL IN THE ROOM. HE WAS GIVEN 2 MG OF INTRANASAL *** X 2 AT THE SCENE AND WOKE UP. NO UDS. DX DRUG INTOXICATION
3 YOM PLACED A SQUISHED-UP PIECE OF FOIL FROM A *** CANDY INTO HIS NOSE. DX: NASAL FOREIGN BODY
25YOF WAS AT FRIENDS HOUSE WHEN SHE ATE FOOD COVERED IN ALUMINUM FOIL. PT FEELS FOIL STUCK IN THROAT . PT ALSO C/O WHITISH VAGINAL DISCHARGE DX: VULVOVAGINAL CANDIDIASIS, SORE THROAT
56YOF PRESENTS WITH THROAT AND TOOTH PAIN. PATIENT STATES LAST MONDAY SHE WAS EATING PASTA AND WAS CONCERNED THAT A PIECE OF ALUMINUM FOIL FROM THE LINING OF THE BOX GOT LODGED IN HER THROAT. SHE NOTES EXPERIENCING A SENSATION OF SOMETHING BEING STUCK IN HER LEFT LOWER THROAT AND ONGOING DISCOMFORT WITH SWALLOWING. ED DX: PAIN; DENTAL AND THROAT
35YOM CUT LEFT HAND ON THE SERRATED BOTTOM EDGE OF ALUMINUM FOIL DX: LACERATION TO HAND
25YOF, REPORTS TWO WEEKS AGO ACCIDENTALLY ATE ALUMINUM FOIL THAT WAS STUCK TO THE BOTTOM OF THE PIZZA THAT SHE WAS EATING AND GRADUALLY DEVELOPED ALTERNATING BLOODY STOOL WITH FRANK BRIGHT RED BLEEDING PER RECTUM, DX: RECTAL BLEEDING, LAMA
25YOF, ACCIDENTALLY CUT FINGER ON THE METAL RIDGES ON ALUMINUM FOIL CONTAINER, DX: LACERATION OF RIGHT THUMB
Consumer Incident Reports
Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.
This involves an empty cardboard tube from aluminum foil roll. It became stuck on tongue of my 8 year old daughter when she was playing with it. She apparently wanted to see if her tongue would fit inside of it.The cardboard tube was unusually thick it looks like, and sucked the moisture out of her tongue. She panicked and twisted it to remove it and it completely sliced open the underside of her tongue causing a lingual frenectomy, very bad and very deep (we have pictures). This resulted in a traumatic visit to the Emergency room and multiple stitches. Please, please, alert Walgreen's and [REDACTED] and others to add a warning to their packages that the tubing's inner circumference is sharp. I never would have thought this would happen from something like this but it happened. Please protect others and warn the consumers that this has been known to happen.
After opening a box of Top Care Health, Extra Strength Gas Relief, 50 softgel package, I pulled one sleeve of green pills out. Upon pressing the green pill through the aluminum foil backing, the backing rolled over into a point puncturing my left forefinger causing a 1 centimeter gash in my finger.
After baking the Lasagna while pulling it from the oven the tinfoil tray collapsed and the hot Lasagna poured out onto my leg hand and foot causing me 3rd degree burns.
A piece of tin foil was removed from the roll, when wrapping it around the container the tin foil cut my pinky fairly deep. Following week same thing happened to my mother in law on her pointer finger, that's when I realized the product was in fact dangerous.
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to aluminum foil wrapping products on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are aluminum foil wrapping products?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, aluminum foil wrapping products have a danger score of 34/100 (low risk). An estimated 1,434 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from aluminum foil wrapping products?
The most common injury is laceration to the finger, accounting for approximately 5,927 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from aluminum foil wrapping products increasing or decreasing?
Up 15% over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for aluminum foil wrapping products injuries?
The 0-4 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 7,633 cases recorded over 20 years. Females are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by aluminum foil wrapping products?
Of all ER visits involving aluminum foil wrapping products, approximately 2.7% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (97.3%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with aluminum foil wrapping products?
You can file a consumer incident report at SaferProducts.gov, the official CPSC reporting portal. Reports help the CPSC identify emerging hazards and trigger investigations or recalls. You can also call the CPSC hotline at 1-800-638-2772.
Related Products in Containers & Packaging
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 34/100 score as relative risk between products, not your personal odds of injury.
- See where this category ranks against every other tracked product. Full rankings
- Injuries cluster in the 0-4 age group, take extra care if that describes your household.
- Check for active recalls on this product before you assume it is safe. CPSC recalls
NEISS estimates ER-treated injuries from a national probability sample of hospitals; they do not capture injuries treated elsewhere or not treated at all.
Data: CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) 2005–2024 and SaferProducts.gov consumer incident reports. Injury estimates are based on a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. hospital emergency departments. This page is for informational purposes only and is not affiliated with the CPSC.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, scored, and verified.
