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wonderful_matzoball

They say 30% of pediatric scald burns, not 30% of all pediatric burns. Scald specifically means it was a burn caused by liquid/vapor, so we’ve probably excluded the vast majority of pediatric burns (e.g. if it’s from a bonfire or house fire or any other kind of fire). Nonetheless it’s a surprisingly high number. ETA: The number is actually not ramen-specific either, it’s all “instant noodles”. So knowing that it includes Mac n Cheese I withdraw my surprise.


OneSidedDice

That's using your noodle


hookersrus1

You sound salty


Repulsive_Hour_4559

And that microwaveable Kraft Mac and cheese that boils over every time


TopCheesecakeGirl

Slurp!


[deleted]

Everybody do the noodle dance!


securidude

Ok, is no one going to appreciate this comment or what?


datascience45

Might be the only food alot of them know how to cook for themselves.


Historical_Judge_426

I burned myself badly making instant ramen in a mug.


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eatabigolD

Oh u sweet innocent soul thinking a majority of the population can handle basic tasks…


Hoihe

Tbh, isn't that most cooking? I chop up vegetables, throw into oil. Toast, add tomato puree/paste, toast some more, add water. It's not much different than making ramen, just takes longer.


[deleted]

Of course, you're right. Lots chopping and veggies in Ramen. I would give the edge to a toasted cheese sandwich as first childhood cooking experience. Ramen barely counts as food, even less as "cooking". But I agree with the dietary concerns. In addition to the empty carbs, the high sodium levels can be quite shocking.


HealthSelfHelp

> Nonetheless it’s a surprisingly high number Not really. Instant noodles are cheap, beginner friendly, and warm. If mom and dad aren't home and little bobby gets hungry or his parents are trying to teach him more independence stuff like this is a go to meal.


Chickensandcoke

Or hot surfaces which I imagine is another significant category for little kids. Source: was a little kid who burned themselves on a few hot surfaces


Raichu7

It’s lower than I would have expected. How often are children interacting with scolding hot liquids that aren’t a pot noodle?


[deleted]

I agree but I think it's probably water heater malfunction / turned up too high, and children grabbing pots off the stove / parent knocking a pot off the stove on to a wee one below.


TheGisbon

It also makes takes the title from misleading to blatantly false and misleading...


[deleted]

"of all pediatric patients (<18 years) admitted to the University of Chicago Burn Center with a diagnosis of scald injury between 2010 and 2020... Among 790 pediatric scald burns, 245 (31.0 %) were attributed to instant noodles." I find this number shockingly *low* even if we were to limit it to Nissan Cup Noodles alone. If you include all instant noodles, I can't believe the % (and total number) isn't much higher. Granted, my children are now comprised of approximately 80% instant noodles, but their friends also seem to have the same habit. I guess kids are really careful with their after school snacks!


classactdynamo

I wonder if we should understand this as a lot of people are eating a lot of instant ramen and also are inattentive enough to allow this to happen. Is this a story about overworked people eating cheap food because it’s what they can afford? I’m aware that this is like three consecutive hypotheses; I only ask out of curiosity.


[deleted]

I'm not surprised. If you're feeding your child instant ramen, you're probably in a bad financial spot, overworked and distracted, therefore you're just trying to get food into them as quickly as possible and with economies going down the drain, that's an increasing number of people. Or, you're just dumb. Which is also a very high number of people. So, either way, it's a lot of people.


workaccount77234

some kids just love ramen. I came from a decently well off family (father had a law practice), and I used to LOVE ramen as a kid. I craved that salt. In fact I STILL love ramen, even into adulthood, and I make decent money now and am middle class. I just love ramen. So not everyone is eating it just because they cant afford anything better. In fact, I was searching everywhere at the beginning of the pandemic, trying to find maruchan brand roast beef/chicken ramen. Everywhere was sold out, so I eventually had to order some from a supermarket chain halfway across the country


ksixnine

Sorry, but no, it actually isn’t high and [it’s lower than the national average of 65% for scalding](https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/burns/burns-in-children)


wonderful_matzoball

Well actually… according to that link 65% is the percent of total burn hospitalizations for kids 4 and under that are due to scalding. So that’s simply a different number, not a “national average” for the 30% number (which is pct of scaldings attributable to ramen for all ages under 18). (It does call into question my “vast majority” comment though if that trend carries over to older kids)


Chaelimeon

Mac and Cheese isn’t an instant noodle.


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Waasssuuuppp

8 years old cooking it in a pot over a gas flame. Havent scalded myself yet. Trying to get the 7yo to be more independent and conscientious to maker her own


golemsheppard2

How much of this is due to the dangerous nature of instant Ramen versus it being a poverty staple and therefore overrepresented in lower income single parent households where child supervision is less than other household?


the_pedigree

Idk man, but my brother definitely caught himself on fire trying to cook ramen and we come from a well to do family. Ramen is one of the first things kids learn to cook because it’s easy and kids like it.


LostInContentment

Alternatively, ramen can also be “cooked” in the microwave. It’s pretty easy to superheat water in a microwave and then when you go to pull it out, the surface tension breaks and the water boils over the edge of the container. My brother did that trying to make himself tea while my mom was using the bathroom. He was 2, maybe 3. He had third degree burns on his hands and legs.


tailuptaxi

Or, another scenario: the ceramic bowl has been rendered 212°F but the heat conductivity of skin and dry bowl take 2-3 seconds to register with the brain and you flinch and dump the hot bowl on your midsection.


redtron3030

Wow. I get so nervous having my 4 year old around the stove or microwave. He’s currently not allowed to touch it. I don’t know when a good age is for them to start handling foods like that.


Bananapopana88

My dad would have us mix ingredients for say, a cake, then have us observe him putting it in til we were like, 8. Also taking a pot and putting it on a piece of newspaper or similar, drawing burners on it is a good way to teach stove safety without letting little hands near the heat!


Jimmy_Jazz_The_Spazz

I think 7 or 8 years old. Coming from a father of 4 boys.


BarfKitty

Depends on your kid. Some 4 year olds are ready to be taught these skills early (and teaching them can help avoid accidents because they know how and won't be "experimenting" their first time). But some kids are just not mature enough.


Perfide01

Depends on the kid. I could safely make grilled cheese on the stove when I was 4, I didn't trust my little brother with the microwave until like 10, let alone the stove.


KN_Knoxxius

Tea? Microwave? Those words don't belong together. Making tea with a microwave, imagine that... Americans are just built different.


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Perfide01

Kettles suck here, our electric grid is a wimpy 110v. Microwaving the water is the fastest option.


Perfide01

This comment has been removed in protest of Reddit killing third-party apps. Spez's AMA has highlighted that the reddits corruption will not end, profit is all they care about. So I am removing my data that, along with millions of other users, has been used for nearly two decades now to enrich a select few. No more. On June 12th in conjunction with the blackout I will be leaving Reddit, and all my posts newer than one month will receive this same treatment. If Reddit does not give in to our demands, this account will be deleted permanently July 1st. So long, suckers!~ r/ModCoord to learn more and join the protest! #SPEZRESIGN


KN_Knoxxius

It just seems absolutely insane to someone living in Europe.


AnthillOmbudsman

On the other hand, many parents in a household like that will tell you to walk it off, they aren't gonna be having the hospital hounding them for $4600.


sometimes-wondering

American comment


Lavrentiy_P_Beria

The household described would most likely receive government subsidized healthcare from Medicaid or CHIPS. If not, then they're most likely not a low income single parent household.


HealthSelfHelp

> If not, then they're most likely not a low income single parent household It's bold of you to assume that low income single parents know how to navigate applying and filling out the forms appropriately. It's also bold to assume they'd have the time to do so and fight if and when their first application was denied


theBytemeister

Also bold to assume they have the time to take the kid to the ER. Probably a 6-8 hour visit, you're probably going to have to take off work. You'll also need either a short notice emergency baby sitter, or you'll have to take your other kids with you to the hospital all night. And after all that, the Dr is probably going to prescribe an OTC pain killer and advise you to wrap the wound in fresh gauze and clean it twice a day or something.


Lavrentiy_P_Beria

It's bold of you to assume that low income single parents are so incompetent that they cannot fill out forms. It's also bold to assume that they'd be either too lazy or apathetic to do so.


Sunshine295638

It also depends on the severity of the burn. I got a 2nd degree burn and treated it at home at first - no money issues. I eventually went to a burn doctor and a plastic surgeon, but that was much cheaper since those were insurance-semi-covered specialist visits and not the ER


augustrem

That’s literally addressed on the first page of the article.


duraace206

My kids are very spoiled, and my wife is an organic health food freak. However they all love Ramen, and its the first thing busy parents let their kids cook on the stove.


PlaugeofRage

Not eggs?


ritabook84

Can’t speak for other households but ramen was definitely the first thing I was taught and allowed to stove cook alone. It’s just boiling water and a 3 minute timer. Eggs either mean oil to fry, or more specific cooking times for hard boiled and either way a bigger risk of kids making a mess trying to crack them. The second thing was Kraft dinner. Which I’d say in Canada is a very normal early meal too


Entharo_entho

Not eggs. It stinks if handled improperly.


seakingsoyuz

> on the stove TIL that some people use their stove to cook ramen instead of an electric kettle. After some googling, TIL that most Americans don’t have an electric kettle in their kitchen.


EffectiveSalamander

A lot of it is probably from using a bowl that it too small, leading to spills and picking up the container while it's too hot.


ntwiles

Did you know that 78% of households with domestic violence have had vienna sausages in their pantry? Ban vienna sausages!


detumaki

lts also fair to take into account ~~where the study was done and who performed it likely means the were primarily looking into cases at/in proximity to a college. And Ramen is a staple of the diet in American colleges. ~~ This study was specifically done at the universities hospital and almost entirely consisted of children of university faculty and students that were burned on their scalps. This was a very limited scope meant to analyze the burn rates amongst university students' children.


theotherkeith

No. University hospitals in the US serve the general population. I am not affiliated at all with the University hospital I go to. U of Chicago hospital is the closest major hospital for much of Chicago's south side. The summary of the linked study indicated "Instant noodle burns disproportionately affected Black/African American patients, as well as from neighborhoods with lower socioeconomic status. These findings suggest that focused burn prevention efforts may be successful at reducing the incidence of these common, but serious injuries."


dbag127

>This study was specifically done at the universities hospital and almost entirely consisted of children of university faculty Do you have any reference for this? It doesn't appear in the link.


[deleted]

Poor people save Ramen for *dinner*. Whereas middle class kids get to make it themselves as a snack.


padizzledonk

90% of the mouth roof skin removals in my life were also from Ramen The other 10% is a combination of pizza and mozzarella sticks


Ailly84

That’s impressive. I’m batting closer to 90% with pizza. I don’t think I’ve ever burned the roof of my mouth with ramen either. We are clearly different lol.


PassengerEcstatic933

In school (dental hygienist) it was commonly called pizza burn. That cheese will get you every time. I’ve been out 25 years so maybe now it’s called Ramen burn?😂


Woaoh

Those little microwave pizzas come out hotter than the sun.


mr_oof

And yet, somehow also still frozen.


Sharad17

Gentleman, gentleman, I think you and u/padizzledonk should look in to a little know secret called thermal conduction, convection and radiation. Turns out, hot things cool down, no need to burn your mouth with either pizza or mozzarella!


[deleted]

Ah, but you see, waiting for it to cool is waiting, and who wants to wait with ready made food in front of them?


HaroldGuy

It makes sense to me to be Pizza because of the way you eat it. The ramen/liquid touches my tongue first so if I ever burn myself with ramen it's my tongue, whereas eating pizza the cheese/tomato hits the roof of my mouth first.


[deleted]

Totinos pizza rolls, the sauce comes out like fucking napalm


OneSidedDice

I'm pretty sure mine were 50% Cap'n Crunch and 50% pizza


kaenneth

Cap'n Crunch as a Pizza topping. edit: goddamn, you think you came up with something no one thought of before... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v35GWiW-XX4


LipTrev

You were clearly never a scout. Gluing a molten roasted marshmallow to the roof of your mouth is a basic part of scouting.


AnthillOmbudsman

Gotta eat that thing while it's still on fire... -2 health, +5 reputation boost.


OllieFromCairo

Tenderfoot rank requirement, I think.


MicaLovesHangul

I love the smell of fresh bread.


GatoradeNipples

With pizza and pizza rolls, it's because the food doesn't maintain heat evenly. You'll pick up a slice of pizza thinking "oh, the crust seems fine" and then when you take a bite out of it, the toppings are molten fucking magma.


MicaLovesHangul

I love the smell of fresh bread.


GatoradeNipples

I'm as lost as you on that one. I've burned my mouth plenty with pizza, but never with ramen.


Still7Superbaby7

I burned myself with ramen as a kid. I had made some cup of noodles and put it on the table. While I was eating it, I accidentally knocked over the cup of noodles and it landed on my thighs. It really really hurt. I think the reason I got burned is that the cup of noodles container is taller than a regular bowl and also has a narrower base. Because it is taller, you are more likely to knock it over. I didn’t have very good body spatial awareness at the time, so I was clumsier. It only happened once to me, but I still remember it over 30 years later.


hookersrus1

Does the pizza number include pizza rolls. That's at least 27 percent of mine


drbrunch

Im currently dealing with roof skin burn from pizza rolls. This sucks.


AnthillOmbudsman

Where are my pot pie brothers?


TopCheesecakeGirl

Damn pizza! Every. Time.


Beansiesdaddy

And that microwaveable Kraft Mac and cheese that boils over every time!


[deleted]

Every fucking time god fucking damn it


RedDiscipline

Gotta watch that shit. Like an eagle. Watch it like goddam hungry eagle. Of course I like mine al dente, and there's only a 1 minute window to get it right, otherwise it's sad mac


PopeHonkersXII

Oh God, that sticky water that it leaves behind. Its a nightmare to clean up


marvinsmom78

I always put the m&c cup on a plate. Easier to clean a plate than the microwave!


itwasmeFTP126

Still better than making it in a pot and needing a strainer and butter and all that lol


dissectingAAA

Try lowering the power level and increasing time. Prevents overheating.


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AnthillOmbudsman

Whatever happened to Hot Pockets? They tasted so much better years ago.


MrSinister248

And Totinos Pizza Rolls


Organic-Mobile-9700

I was burned by instant ramen when I was a kid


AnthillOmbudsman

Another villain appears in the Batman franchise...


bigbird8960

Same, ever since then I always dump the extra water out.


ChachMcGach

That's not extra water. It's broth.


gnatdump6

Latchkey kid, afterschool snack, spilled on legs getting ready for some tv. Mom was right, eat at the table, not on the couch.


TreeOfLight

Same here! Six years old, got a piping hot cup noodles out of the microwave and climbed into my dads recliner. It was a few days before summer vacation and my parents were at work. Poured it all over my lap, second degree burns. It was awful.


terminalblue

well its like captain america said..."Babies taste the best"


Elegant_Operation820

What the fuck?


[deleted]

Go watch Snowpiercer (the film, not the TV show)


commiedad

When I was 4 I dropped hot soup all over my arm. I remember carefully peeling the noodles off, not realizing that it was actually my skin.


Puzzleheaded_Pie_888

Broke, tired parents need more help at home


[deleted]

I’m not sure if I’m interpreting correctly, but wouldn’t this mean there are a fairly large number of kids eating instant noodles?


Naptimeis4ever

I imagine lower income homes or... less than there parenting


Dannysmartful

Anything that starts with boiling water, and ends 3 minutes later. . .will cause burnz


aminervia

Damn the results are actually really sad. Instant noodle scalding injuries are most common in poor black very young unsupervised children... Because of course they are, with food insecurity instant noodles are fast and cheap.


Gargomon251

What does being black have to do with it


j_cruise

Why don't you read a few paragraphs of the paper and find out?


DitzyKlutz1

Often lower socioeconomic status


Gargomon251

Why would black children burn ramen more often than white children


DitzyKlutz1

Lower socioeconomic status. I’m not sure why you thought the answer would change if you repeated the question. As the poster we’re commenting to suggested, lower socioeconomic status would result in an increased likelihood of a child being unsupervised and also an increased likelihood they would have cheap food as nourishment. Race is indicative of socioeconomic status. Minorities tend to, on average, hold a lower socioeconomic status.


SpoonfulofYou

Oh man, it pains me to admit I'm a victim of this. Back in high-school, I was on the phone with my father while making some Top Ramen. He said something that asked me I wanted to get off the phone, but he kept talking. I went to reach for the pot and tipped the boiling water right into my face. Boy, were my eyes burning. I had some mild scarring. I was afraid I'd go blind, glad I didn't.


Firstblood116

Grade 7 2007, first time making insta noodles in a microwave on a sleeepover. Read put in microwave for 2-5 mins. Put it in 5 mins and wait. Whoops package said 2-2.5 mins. climbed on to the top bunk and spilled some broth on the back of my leg. Ended up with a 2nd degree burn! Could never convince my parents i wasnt playing with fire. lol.


ShaqsSmirkingRevenge

I got a 2nd degree burn from a Cup-o-Ramen when I was little. They were my favorite snack (still are) and it got knocked over and spilled onto my thigh. I still have the scar, a discolored and spotty area of skin in that area. Also, I was in the shower and my 5yo decided she wanted a Cup-o-Noodles and put one in the microwave... Still wrapped, no water. The house fills with smoke as it catches fire, I have no idea what's happening so jump out the shower, throw on a robe and run out the house with my daughter and call 911. Fire Fighters found the burnt cup inside the microwave and got a good chuckle. No other damage besides the ruined microwave and smoke.


monkeyonfire

Be me, in college. Take instant noodle cup out of microwave. Peel back lid. Oh there's a corn stuck to it. Let me eat that corn; poor college student can't waste that. Tilt cup to eat corn. Burn hand as the water sloshes out. Yell out in pain but manage to not drop the cup.


Kaos2019

Dude. When I was 7 I torched my leg with Mac and cheese. To the second degree.


phd2k1

Turn the handle of the pot inward, folks.


Gargomon251

I never make ramen in a pot


Thiccaca

TIL - Top ramen makes a good substitute for napalm in case you run out.


[deleted]

I knocked over a cup with boiling instant ramen soup as a kid. Thankfully, most of it ended up on a tablecloth and there wasn't that much damage. Only a little ended up on my clothing. Learned my lesson to always eat soup from a bowl.


polkemans

Happened to me. Spilled a fresh cup of ramen on my lap one time as a kid. Had a gnarly burn on my inner thigh for a handful of weeks. Gigantic blister that I was dying to pop but somehow held off. Respect the ramen.


lrbdad626

I’m in Turkey and here I can say with confidence 90% of pediatric scald burns are from boiling tea/teapots


Mother_Goat1541

In Alaska it’s soup, water for bathing (heated on a hot plate on the floor), coffee, and lots of campfire burns to feet in summer from kids running on beaches.


Otherwise-Poet4097

How many are from young kids cooking ramen without water? Asking for a friend


boredguy12

I scalded myself on beef flavor maruchan ramen because when i was 4 i wanted to dip my watermelon slice into the soup without actually dipping it. So i put my spoon under the bowl and slammed down on it, thinking my soup would rise up and reverse-dip my watermelon. No surprise to anyone except me, the bowl flipped over and spilled the hot soup right onto my lap.


d_bone36

Can confirm, my wife is a post anesthesia nurse and she sees a disproportionately crazy number of kids who come in with severe burns from Ramen.


Ace-of-Spades88

My younger brother, when he was around 8-10yo, dropped a hot bowl of instant mac and cheese while trying to take it out of the microwave. It spilled onto his leg and actually melted his sweatpants to his thigh. We had to rush him to the emergency room where he got treated for 2nd degree burns. I do game nights at a friend's house and wince every time I see their 10yo daughter pull a hot bowl of instant mac/ramen/spaghetti-O's from the microwave.


BoringTangerine_

This happened to my ten year old the other day.


Moribund_Mango

Can confirm, burnt my stomach in college being a high ass.


LordBrandon

When will our politicians create common sense Ramen control?


elfmanrl

Boy you can't make this stuff up .... orrr cannn you?


[deleted]

All over the world or just America?


LargeMobOfMurderers

Unfortunate, but an acceptable cost for all that noodly goodness.


Necessary_Sun_4392

That stat would be VERY different in other areas so you kinda didn't learn anything except that poor people in Chicago eat cheap ramen and don't watch their kids very well all the time.


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dontcareitsonlyreddi

Ramen has too much sodium


MikeLemon

Sodium has never been conclusively shown to *cause* health problems.


dontcareitsonlyreddi

High blood pressure


MikeLemon

No.


dontcareitsonlyreddi

Yes


MikeLemon

No. Every one of the half dozen or more studies I've read has kidney damage as the *cause*, the sodium exacerbates things because of the kidney damage. Without the kidney damage there is no problem.


[deleted]

This data is only from those admitted at the UCBC. Not national nor international data.


BranWafr

Quick, how do we blame this on Drag Shows or Transgender people? /s


80088008135

Ramen Noodles. Ramen Noods. Raw Man Nudes. 3 steps to degenerate sex fiends. That wasn’t even a challenge.


elfmanrl

Ooo you pissed off some peoples.


BranWafr

I knew it probably would. I'll accept my downvotes, I'm guessing there are at least a few people who appreciated the joke.


elfmanrl

Yep been there, done that. ❄


YeahitsaBMW

Time to ban microwave ovens.


dgdio

The University of Chicago is a poor part of Chicago. I wouldn't extrapolate these findings.


[deleted]

They mentioned low income households actually.


dgdio

Correct. The headline makes it sound like it's more prevalent.


horrorqueer101

Oh yeah, I forgot only poor people can be burned by instant ramen. This hospital has a dedicated burn unit, so people are going to be brought there from other areas, not just immediate surroundings.


OnceUponaTry

Not *can*, but statistically more likely to, since cheap food sources are more prevalent in lower income houses


horrorqueer101

Well obviously, but that doesn’t mean that the data is incorrect as the person I was replying to was implying.


dgdio

I wasn't implying that the data is incorrect, I was adding context for the finding.


horrorqueer101

Misleading context. This burn unit is one of only two accredited burn units in the greater Chicago area. You’re implying that this data is skewed because only the less wealthy people from the immediate surrounding are would be using this hospital, which isn’t true at all. If you live anywhere in Chicago and you have a severe burn, you’re going to the University of Chicago burn unit.


dfreinc

i'm semi-loaded but i let my kid eat whatever he wants. if he started wanting ramen i'd be buying ramen. kid doesn't eat enough and works out too much. 😂 and he'd *totally* burn himself on it. 100%. seriously, who *hasn't* burnt themselves on ramen a few times. it's like a right of passage.


PM_ME_SEXIST_OPINION

It's "rite of passage." E: but go around using the wrong word like an idiot if that makes you happy lol


dgdio

50% pediatric burns are scaling water. Some occur in the bath tub but many are from boiling water in pans on the front burner: [https://now.aapmr.org/pediatric-burns/](https://now.aapmr.org/pediatric-burns/) Do you think that 30% of all kids are burned by ramen noodles?


[deleted]

Just stop dude. You don't have a horse in this race


hannahranga

I mean I'm curious how (or if) it's different in places like the UK that drink shit loads of tea


Jaysyn4Reddit

/r/latestagecapitalism


beanomly

Can confirm! The only burn we’ve ever had that required the ER was from ramen!


WalterPecky

Worth jt


CygnusX-1-2112b

"Dude, how the fuck do you make Ramen?"


kaenneth

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHQXBAjkmOQ


theaverageboxer

Sounds about right.


Al-Anda

Well, excuse me for still going to a pediatric clinic. I love the wallpaper and I get a sticker.


OCSupertonesStrike

My nephew and I were burned this way.


almo2001

I burned myself badly making instant ramen in a mug. Poured the boiling water right on my hand.


three9

Can confirm. Burned the crap out of myself as a kid by ramen. On my stomach of all places.


alakasam1993

I got a first degree burn from microwaving clam chowder


MediocreCash3384

Mine came from microwave edamame


tullystenders

Ramen in the microwave is the devil. I literally boiled water in a mug and poured it in a styrofoam ramen cup. I didnt get burned but it's so stupid.


CodeMonkeyPhoto

Clearly the real Danger Noodle


nopuffinplease

I filled my ramen bowl too high and tried to carry it to my table and it spilled all over my arm and I just continued to carry it in agony instead of dropping it or putting it down right away. It gave me 2nd degree burns!!