Product Tampering Risks

The idea of product tampering risks came to my mind as I was watching a program on TV about positive mental attitude. The program was about less fortunate people who had overcome their limitations through positive thoughts and attitudes. In the program, I learned about a woman who had purchased an over the counter eye drop product on her way home and after using the product, she became blind and lost her entire sight because someone had added an unknown substance into the product. Interestingly enough, when she was interviewed, she said something like "I lost my sight but found a new vision for my life". Initially she was depressed following the incident but then gained her strength and a new life back.

The point of this article is to discuss and demonstrate the product tampering risks that we might be taking when purchasing over the counter products or using public products such as soap, shampoo and towels available at the gyms or many other health products we use at the hotels. In the past, every time I used the free soap and shampoo at the gym, I could not stop thinking about the risk of some disgruntled employee or customer at the gym or hotel mixing poisonous chemicals which is very simple as the soap and shampoo dispensers are not locked. After seeing the program and learning about the story of this woman, I now use my own shampoo the cost of which is well worth the peace of mind and potential trouble I might face from product tampering.

Due to my career as a corporate auditor and risk manager, I am trained to think about risks all the time, even in my own personal life. When I read stories such as the story of the woman above, I feel the need to bring up these risks and ways to protect ourselves.

As I mentioned, one of the ways to protect ourselves is to bring and use our own shampoo to the gym and hotels. Another way to manage the over the counter medication tampering risks is to only buy sealed items. If a product is not sealed or appears to have been tampered with, don’t buy or use them. Many of the shampoos provided at the hotels don’t have an anti-tampering protective seal and it’s hard to tell whether the product has been mixed with anything dangerous.

There are many other cases which warrant the need for bringing up this topic. For example, not only you must use your own products when visiting public places to reduce your risks, but you must also not leave them unattended while taking care of other tasks.

It’s OK to take risks in life, but avoiding unnecessary risks with easy and inexpensive habits is a smart way to avoid unnecessary challenges in life.

Browse the identity theft sections after reading about product tampering risks.