Swimsuits fail safety test

[Anchor]

As the summer vacation season arrives, many people are buying water play gear.

But children’s swimsuits sold on Chinese online platforms were found to have pH levels exceeding the standard.

The levels were high enough to cause skin conditions in children.

Here’s Jeong Yeon-wook.

[Report]

Even on a weekday, the Han River pool is full of kids enjoying summer break.

Water play is a must in this heat.

And each child comes with at least one item like an inflatable tube.

[Lim Jae-beom/Yongsan District, Seoul: “(Where did you buy this?) I bought this online. (Do you buy a lot of things online?) Yes."]

Online shopping is popular for comparing different products in one place.

[Kim Han-na/Bucheon City, Gyeonggi Province: “You can see all the brands and styles of swimsuits at once—it’s really convenient.”]

The Seoul city government inspected 33 products, including kids’ water toys and swimsuits sold on Chinese platforms like AliExpress and Temu.

Some swimsuits showed a pH level of 9.4—far above the safe limit and highly alkaline.

This can harm children’s mildly acidic skin.

[Park Hye-ran/Family Medicine Specialist: “If the fabric is too acidic or too alkaline, it can irritate the skin and break down the protective barrier, leading to itching or allergic contact dermatitis.”]

Thirteen other products also failed domestic safety standards.

Some swimsuits lacked essential drawstrings, while some flotation devices had loose buckles.

Others had parts small enough to pose choking hazards to infants and toddlers.

Seoul city has published the test results online and asked the platforms to suspend sales of the unsafe products.

This is Jeong Yeon-wook, KBS News.