Are there too many warnings in life?

By Kaushik Basu Professor of economics, Cornell University

Air passengers have to now contend with newer warnings

Earlier this summer - before the Mumbai train blasts and before the heightened tension in Heathrow - I was taking a flight within India.

Security was lax; a genial security officer did a cursory pat down and waved me on. I asked him if he did not need to do a more thorough check. His response: "Nowadays nothing untoward happens."

This is no doubt a case of the oriental fatalism act overdone. But, at times, I wonder if the world is not going too far in the other direction.

Given the rise of terrorism the world over, of course, airport frisking will be extra-diligent, and parking a car to drop off passengers at airports will cause security personnel to go edgy. These are quite understandable.

But there is an aspect of caution in life that deserves scrutiny. What concerns me is that, through a combination of forces, ranging from the fear of litigation to the rise of genuine risks in everyday life, we are erring on the side of caution.

Chilling instruction

If you read the warning labels on products you will know what I mean. My printer ink cartridge, for instance, has a warning that I should not drink it. I do not know whether I should thank the company that produced it for its touching concern for my health or send a letter to the product manager asking him what he thinks my IQ is.

What concerns me is that, through a combination of forces, ranging from the fear of litigation to the rise of genuine risks in everyday life, we are erring on the side of caution Your comments on the article

The husk of psyllium, popularly known in India as isabgol, that grows in abundance in the Kutch region of Gujarat, has been known from ancient times for its medicinal value. Two spoonfuls stirred with water and taken at night acts as a mild (and soothing, some diehards would insist) laxative. Recent research has also suggested that isabgol may lower cholesterol.

In India isabgol is widely used, adults and children gulping it down with water and without a thought. In the US it can be bought over the counter under various brand names, such as Metamucil.

But alas, when you are about to down one of these, your mind, far from being put to rest, has every reason to be on alert, for you are told: "Taking this product without adequate fluid may cause it to swell and block your throat or oesophagus and may cause choking."

Travelling by British Airways from Calcutta, via London, to New York last month, I could understand the severe limits placed on what we could carry, and the meticulous checks that our baggage was subjected to at each airport. In fact it was comforting to have that drill.

But what about the routine, chilling instruction (crafted by the International Air Transport Authority and so covers all airlines) we get at the start of each airplane flight, such as how to get into the "brace position" in the event of an emergency?

'Chilling' warnings can often backfire

I wonder if this is not overdone and also poor economics.

On the cost side is the fact that it ruins the journey for thousands of air-travellers who are already uncomfortable about flying, by reminding and in effect exaggerating to them the risks involved.

If, every time you got into a car, you had to hear a recitation of the risks of driving and of how, in an accident, the airbags will open up and how you should respond to such an eventuality (for instance, not have your knitting needle pointing towards the airbags), we would have much less traffic and many more hypertension patients.

Miniscule probability

What about the benefits? It is true that in some events this instruction can save one.

But to see how miniscule that probability is, note first that the chance of an emergency, where the need arises to get into the brace position, is tiny; and, second, if the need does arise, the most likely outcome is that one will meet one's end in a brace position, and there is nothing to commend that.

The probability that the brace position is needed and will save you is therefore microscopically small.

So, if we do a serious cost-benefit analysis of these alarming announcements, my guess is that we will cease to bother passengers with them.

And the hazard warning does not end there.

'You must not have your knitting needle pointing towards the airbag'

If, after settling into your seat, you reach into your pocket for one of those refreshment strips,, "Cool Mint Listerine Pocket Packs", for instance, you will notice a word of caution in bold: WARNING: THE CARRYING CASE MAY CAUSE A CHOKING HAZARD.

In case you were tempted to eat not just the candies but the carrying case, I suppose that is a useful warning.

Weighed down by these thoughts, last evening I tried to put all the dangers surrounding me out of my mind, and relax with a book and a glass of soda.

And what better than ginger ale, caffeine free, Canada Dry, to soothe the nerves?

But no sooner had I sunk into the sofa and picked up the bottle, my eyes fell on a warning on the side of it: "Contents under pressure. Cap may blow off causing eye or other serious injury. Point away from face or people."

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This debate is now closed. Here is a selection of your views.

What¿s happened with Basu? Why is he shifted from serious economic issues to this type of non issues? Does he feel no economic issue is left for further research? By the way article is interesting. I hope to see Basu¿s comments on recent economic issue next time.
chandan sharma, india

Definitely all this airport security is simply paranoid and overdone. Look at the "liquids and gel" situation. After the London "maybe" attack nobody could bring liquids and gel. Now it is allowed again in small amounts (exactly defined!!) If liquids and gel were soooo dangerous to prohibit it before, why is it not so dangerous now? Did somebody make his homework too late?
Johann, Costa Rica

Every time I pick up the bottle containing children's vitamin to give them my kids, I can't help but smile reading the warning on the label, "Keep out of the reach of children".
Ashish Ganju, US

Reminder of one I heard - Warning on wheel barrow: Not intended for highway use.
Brad, Canada

Our own BBC website has "The BBC is not responsible for the content of external Internet sites" Thank you so much for letting us know that.
Subbarao, India/USA

Reminds me of the warning sign on vending machines not to tip them or they will fall on you and kill you. But we nevertheless give the machine a big blow when things get stuck throwing all caution to the wind.
Amit, US

Shortly after the September 11th attacks, some reporter asked a safety expert they were interviewing what you could do to protect yourself after the attacks. The answer? "Quit Smoking, and wear your seatbelt." Horrible as the terrorist attack was, automobiles killed about as many US residents that month, and smoking-related diseases killed about 10 times as many.
Bill Stewart, USA

The laxness of the security officer was not a case of oriental fatalism. Why is fatalism only oriental according to Dr Basu? Surely it is occidental as well. The security officer was merely responding to the Indian environment which is not filled with paranoia about terrorism unlike the west.
Malolan R Cadambi, Bangalore, India

I agree that some warnings may seem gratuitous, and may seem insulting to people of ordinary intelligence. But what if some people have actually done something stupid with these products in the past? Isn't it then worth it to put up the warnings, especially in the US, where people sue companies routinely for not warning them about such trivial things? Especially in the US, I think companies put up the warnings mainly because of the threat of possible legal action by customers against them.
Ashutosh Jogalekar, India/USA

This is absolutely true. In the Atlanta airport there is a glass display case of prohibited items, including a chainsaw. I know there are dumb people out there but I cannot bring myself to believe that somebody would attempt to carry on a chainsaw.
Sid, USA

Yes, I think a new warning needs to be added--warning, ignore this warning. Taking this warning seriously may be more hazardous to your health than the risk we just warned you about.
Jim, USA

Very relevant and funny article.
Samaresh Mukhopadhyay, USA

What you're saying makes sense but I will respectfully remind you that the warning snippets mentioned in your article pertain to the US, where you get sued for almost nothing. So from a business standpoint, the company would rather have idiotic small print warnings on their products than get sued by some lunatic/s.
Amit K, USA

I was amazed to read this warning on the entrance of an elevator. "In case of emergency please use stairs. Please do not use the elevator."
Tumul Singh, US

I'm not sure that it's "we" who are erring on the side of caution, it's bureaucrats who mandate that warnings be given (my favourite - the warning on my step ladder not to stand on the top step because I might fall off) and manufacturers in a - probably fruitless - attempt to minimise liability should someone actually be injured by their product (the ginger ale bottle). I think "we" have a lot more common sense than "we" are given credit for, and I really don't need to be told that a knife is sharp - it's be pretty useless if it weren't.
Derek Freyberg, U.S.A.

What a brilliant article! Dr. Basu's sentiments about the obsessive and often worthless warnings are a reflection of the feelings of many immigrants to the West. Manufacturers in America (I can only speak for the US since I have lived here for years) give their consumers less credit than they deserve. I don't remember any such warnings on products when I was growing up in Bombay. It was more of a 'trial and error' sort of life and we got to use our gray matter a bit more than the society here in the US allows.
Alisha, USA

I would always think why prescription drugs would always have the instruction to take medicine by mouth and wonder if patients were that stupid not to take it orally. But, the above warning signs mentioned in this article seem even more brainless!!
Indrani, USA

Is this columnist out of ideas? Each one of the "alarmist" warnings he mentions seems perfectly reasonable and quite necessary. I had no idea that isabgol could cause an adverse reaction in the absence of adequate fluid; I'm glad someone put that on the label. Imagine if that happened to your child. Consumer safety warnings should hardly be dispensed of because a few unusual people such as the columnist get freaked out by them. As far as cost benefit analysis goes, why not apply it to the role of economists in society? I suspect many of them would be jobless, if this column is anything to judge by.
Nurav Shah, USA

I'm in favour of a warning sign as you enter every town that reads like "Warning! this town contains perceivable and non-perceivable hazards, take care and enjoy your stay". When I was in Mexico, the place was full of holes in the pavement, spikes at eye level, a total lack of warning signs and everyone seemed to get along just fine!
Jacob, UK

WARNING: the above article may cause laughter and a careless disregard for safety labels, resulting in blindness, injury and death by choking (on a packet of cool-mint strips).
Shevaun, UK

Reading this article reminded me of a joke about a pumpkin farmer. Every year when it came to harvest thieves would steal his pumpkins and sell them in the town. This year he decided to prevent the theft by injecting one pumpkin with poison, and putting up a sign saying 'Warning one of these pumpkins has been injected with lethal poison'. This worked for a few days until one morning passing his field he noticed another sign which said 'Now there are two'.
Daniel Smith, England

CAUTION: Living may result in premature death.
Andy, England

How about the bulk food bin for peanuts that has the warning, "May contain peanuts", and the store manager who appears not to see the absurdity when it's pointed out to him.
Archie Bell, Canada

I grew up in Russia, but currently live in the US, and some of the warnings i see still absolutely boggle my mind. Here, when you buy a coffee to go, your cup tells you, in big block letters: CAUTION! CONTENTS MAY BE HOT! Well, i should hope so! My other absolute favourite essential warning is (on my hair dryer): DO NOT USE IN SHOWER.
Ksenia, USA

I most enjoy the warnings for side effects for medications, which often seem to defy logic - such as my asthma inhaler, which, among numerous side effects so frightening it's best not to read them, lists "breathing difficulties", which certainly wouldn't help matters when you were having an asthma attack...
Clare, UK

My favourite of this sort of excitable labelling was from a pack of Tuna Steaks which contained the following: "Allergy advice: Contains FISH." I was at a loss as to what else it was supposed to contain.
Kate, UK

My favourite is on cigarette lighters - "contains flammable liquid" thank heavens for that or they wouldn't work!
Chris, Bristol

I can see where you're coming from but you should remember, there are some very, very stupid people out there, so the warnings do serve some purpose. Plus it's not as though the space taken up on the packaging could be filled up with anything more useful.
Rob Avery, England

I remember not too long ago reading the warning on a bottle of Tixylix which is a medicine for children - in fact it specifically states on the box that it should only be given to children. It also states "May cause drowsiness. Do not drive or operate machinery if effected". Shouldn't be a problem because my 9 year old now cannot reach the peddles from his booster seat!!!
Alex Bailey, England

Reading a book? I'm shocked. You might get a paper cut.
David Cantrell, London

I cannot help feeling that Mr Basu is making a mountain out of a molehill. These warnings have been around for years, and nowadays people shrug them off as being part of the legal requirements for the product.
Oliver, The Netherlands

I can't really blame manufacturers. US juries tend to make huge awards against manufacturers when an accident involving a product was really caused by the user's stupidity.
Mike, South Africa

A couple of words about the brace position and the other airline warnings. I work in the industry - and I must say, there've been dozens of cases over the years where aircraft made a successful emergency landing/ditching, and passengers were able to walk away uninjured because they knew which position to be in. True, personnel will remind you about what to do in this event - but, in aviation, all rules are written with somebody's blood. If there is a chance this warning might save somebody's life, I'm all for it.
Gerhard, Germany

During my undergraduate schooling I worked as a lab assistant at Marshall Space Flight Centre, a NASA facility in Huntsville, Alabama. On every pane of glass in the entire facility was a little warning sticker: CAUTION: GLASS. Do not lean on or apply pressure; glass can break. This was the facility devoted to the study of the properties of materials. You'd think these folks of all people should know this.
Walter Freeman, USA

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