Lemon aesthetics in hand dishwashing detergents do not influence reported accidental ingestion frequency and volume

Accidental ingestion reports for 2 nationally distributed hand dishwashing detergents with similar formulations were compared to determine the possible effect of lemon aesthetics on ingestion frequency and volume. Data were compared over almost a 2-year period (May 1986 to April 1988), and a total of 2141 accidental ingestion reports for the 2 products were reviewed. There was no difference in the reported ingestion volume of lemon-scented versus nonlemon-scented product. Fewer accidental ingestion reports were received for lemon-scented than for nonlemon-scented products, even when data were normalized for market shipments of each product.