Are Electric Blankets Safe

On this page you will find helpful safety information on who an who should not use electric blankets and the health risk and dangers associated with them. Many people use electric blankets so the question is does the benifits of a electric blanket out weigh the dangers.

• Pregnant Woman
• Those With a Artificial Pacemakers
• Diabetics
• Children

As with any electrical device, things do occasionally go wrong with electric blankets. Its a Fact of life, sometimes things break, nothing last forever. For example, the control may not work properly, the blanket can become entangled or bunched together which may cause an overheated condition or even the heater wire could break. For these reasons it would be Foolish to allow young children or infants use an electric blanket. You should definitely not allow your child to have a electric blanket if they have a bed wetting problem.

Every Doctor and every medical website will have a diferent opinion on the matter, whether a pregnant woman should use a electric blanket or not. Some will say there is no problem with it, others will say you should never use them. But in the case of a baby you should always use extra caution after all it is a unborn child, After all it is possible that something could go wrong like overheating of the fetus. If need be you can always just use the heating blanket to get the bed warm then just turn it off prior to getting in and sleeping.

You might read the warning label and see some thing on it that cautions diabetics about the use of electric blankets. Well there's good reason behind why a diabetic should exercise extreme caution. Diabetics often lose some feeling in there legs and or arms and could sustain a severe burn if they cannot feel that the blanket is to warm. The same rule could apply for a diabetic as the pregnant woman, you could simply turn it on and get the bed warm but turn the switch off before getting into bed.

Although nothing has ever been proven, another fact that may or may not sway your decision is Electric Blanket EMF's ( Electromagnetic Frequency Waves). The goverment spent years and millions of dollars researching if EMF's were responsible for development of cancer, Learning/behavioral conditions or reproductive issues but the study came back inconclusive.

There has never been direct evidence that a electric blanket could damage a artificial pacemaker, it is advised you ask your doctor and the manufacture/distributor of your electric blanket before use.

Some general safety Hazards would include these. Do not run the cord or switch under any carpet or between the mattress and box spring. Doing this could rub the insulation off the cord and expose a live electrical wire, this could result in serious injury or death.

Do not allow any pets around the cord to your Electric blanket. Your pet may chew on the cord and expose a live electrical wire, this could result in serious injury or death.

Do Not leave your blanket on unintended, it could over heat and catch fire.

Never pinch or bend any of the wire elements inside your blanket. It is recommended that you don't have a electric blanket of a moving bed. the bed may pinch the wire inside the blanket.

Turn off your blanket when not in use to prevent fire.

Do not put any kind of cleaning fluid on your blanket. Some Cleaning Fluids are acidic and may damage the insulation on elements or electrical wires.

Never iron your electric blanket, this could result in melted wires.

 The Number one rule is you should read the tag and owners manual to your electric blanket. If oyu have any questions about a possible safety hazard you should always contact your blanket manufacture and ask.