Fitness Balls Burst, Injure People

Our fellow IB blogger, Joe Saunders, has a very interesting post on his blog dealing with Fitness Balls exploding and causing injury to people. These ball are usually used to strengthen the "core." A number of these balls have been recalled due to the risk of injury. I was first made aware of this months ago when a player from the Florida Gators basketball team was hurt while doing a bench press with dumbells while balancing on a fitness ball. He broke both wrists. This clued me in that there might be something wrong with the balls, because I am sure the training staff at UF kept the balls with the required and recommended air pressure.

Many people do not just use the balls for situps, but also use weights while on the balls. This can lead to very serious injury, as demonstrated by the UF basketball player. Another person may not have been as lucky and had the weights drop on their head, injuring their head, neck, or even brain.

Again, I am all for free enterprise, but makers of deffective products should be held accountable when their products do not meet up to the standards and cause injury to people. Being held accountable is the best way to ensure companies keep improving their products in both quality and safety.