May Cause Drowsiness
originally posted: 02/20/02
Brought to you by Michigan Lawsuit Abuse Watch, which sponsors Wacky Warning
Label Contest each year to reveal how lawsuits, and concern about potential
lawsuits, have created a need for common-sense warnings on many of the
products consumers use every day. "May cause drowsiness" appeared on a
prescription for sleeping pills. (I read about this in yesterday's online
Star Tribune.)
Other favorites:
- "Do not use the Ultradisc2000 as a projectile in a catapult." (Not
sure what in Ultradisc2000 is, but now at least we know what it isn't.)
- "Caution - Risk of Fire" on a fake fireplace log
- "DO NOT use soft wax as ear plugs or for any other function that
involves insertion into a body cavity" On a box of birthday candles
- "When operating the selector dial with your eye to the viewfinder,
care should be taken not to put your finger in your eye accidentally" on a
35mm camera
Past winners and placers include: a label advising consumers not to use a
hand-held massager while sleeping or unconscious, one warning not to eat
laser printer toners, another to avoid spraying deodorant into your eyes,
one that suggests not using a wind-proof beach towel in a hurricane, advice
that bicyclist shin pads won't protect any body part they're not covering,
and the sleeping pill warning mentioned above.
Probably the best of all time was the grand prize winner in the contest's
second year, when this caution appeared on a baby stroller:
"Remove child before folding."