Most parents see McDonalds as sometimes food or a last resort on a busy day; McDonalds’ menu, while it has improved somewhat over the years, is still known for being full of fatty and unhealthy menu items. The chain’s reputation of being fattening and unhealthy has long harmed its bottom line. In a bid to change that image, McDonalds has tried a number of things over the years, mostly aimed at slimming down their menu items, offering healthy alternatives, and making their restaurant a healthier place for kids in particular. Their latest effort came in the form of step trackers in a variety of colors that came with Happy Meals. The simple trackers were meant to get kids up and moving, but it seems that they won’t be distributed anymore.
The activity trackers have been garnering scattered reports of potential skin irritation. While there have reportedly been no cases just yet, it’s not too much of a stretch to think of it as a possibility. The product is, after all, made to include tech featured in products costing at least $5 or so, yet it’s made cheaply enough to be packed into a McDonald’s Happy Meal costing $3.99. On top of that, the bands are made in China. While a number of quality products do come from China, some cheaper products from the People’s Republic have a reputation of being low-quality or even dangerous.
The activity bands, looking somewhat like very cheap smartwatches, feature a jelly plastic band that’s supposed to allow one size to fit most kids’ wrists. This same sort of jelly plastic has been reported, in other products, to cause skin irritation, such as a pair of flip flops from Wal-Mart that left burns on customers’ feet. McDonalds has yet to release any specifics about why the product may cause irritation, or what to do if you happen to have one of these trackers. Presumably, since they were included with Happy Meals, the best approach would be to simply dispose of them. While the fitness trackers were a step in the right direction, McDonald’s has gone ahead with pulling them pending an investigation. There has been no word on whether they will be returning in the future with a different manufacturing process, but for now, a company representative has announced that McDonalds will be “offering our youngest guests an alternative Happy Meal toy.”