Did calls about cleaning product exposures spike during the pandemic?

When the pandemic hit, many of us stocked up on cleaning supplies and disinfectants. A new look at calls to U.S. poison centers shows that reports of exposures to these products increased substantially beginning in March 2020. The analysis didn't track specific injuries or health outcomes—it just counted the calls that came in. This is surveillance data, which means it shows a pattern happening at the same time as the pandemic, but it can't prove that the pandemic itself caused the increase. The data also doesn't tell us how big the increase was or what kinds of health problems people experienced. It's an important signal that something shifted in our homes, reminding us that even everyday products need to be used carefully.