TOKYO —

Apparently Japanese kids can’t stop walking face-first into door handles because Japanese department store chain Tokyu Hands has begun selling a polystyrene safety grip that slides over your door handle to protect children from such collisions.

The best part? It’s called the Waffle Handle and nobody knows why.

We can’t help but think Tokyu Hands is trying to exploit the sometimes excessive concern a mother may have for her child. Not to say that a child’s safety deserves any less than the utmost attention; just, before purchasing the Waffle Handle, we’d like you to think about how many times as a child were you walking perfectly parallel to and so close to a wall that you, in a brief moment of distraction, rammed your forehead into the handle of a closed door?

If your answer is greater than or equal to “one,” you should be ashamed of yourself.

If you’re still set on buying a set of Waffle Handles for your home, they come in four different colors and slide on easily to fit most door handle types. The Waffle Handle is also useful for preventing static electricity and is supposedly a hit with the elderly as well.

The Waffle Handle costs 720 yen can be purchased at Tokyu Hands department stores or online from the Tokyu Hands Online Shop.

RocketNews24

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  OMGhontoni at May. 30, 2012 - 07:33AM JST

  720 yen for ONE??! Screw that! Those cold patches you put on bumps are about 380 yen for a pack of 10!

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  Cletus at May. 30, 2012 - 07:40AM JST

  What a joke, unless the kid is walking along with its head rubbing on the door it is hardly likely to hit its head as in the picture.... Nothing more than a cheap marketing gimmick

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  Probie at May. 30, 2012 - 07:59AM JST

  How to stop kids from walking into door handles

  I may be being a little too radical here, but how about letting them do it once, and have them learn to be careful?

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  Okinawamike at May. 30, 2012 - 08:11AM JST

  Try taking away the cell phone and Gameboy, then maybe they could try something like "watch where you're going" advice.

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  Simon Phillips at May. 30, 2012 - 08:47AM JST

  As the name says its all just "waffle" as in the term c""p!

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  Daijoboots at May. 30, 2012 - 08:50AM JST

  What a cute picture! It's clear to see how painful it is walking into metal door handles, but with the Waffle Handle on it's a pleasure! And as an added bonus, your hair will bounce back into top form!

  Regardless of the 'adult' author's cynicism, I think it is a good idea.

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  DoLittleBeLate at May. 30, 2012 - 08:51AM JST

  Just the same scare-mongering as the street signs "look out for chikans!" or the "suspicious luggage" and "heightened alert" messages on the station in oh-so-safe Japan.

  Scared Japanese forks out the dough, it's good for business.

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  papasmurfinjapan at May. 30, 2012 - 09:46AM JST

  Well technically that won't stop them from walking into door handles.. If anything, it may actually promote it - especially when they eventually come out with a hello kitty version.

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  gyroman at May. 30, 2012 - 09:47AM JST

  This doesn't stop the kids from walking into the handles! It's kind of reducing the pain after they walk into them. Change of headline, please.

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  cwhite at May. 30, 2012 - 09:51AM JST

  huh, that handle was to help kids and elderly to open the door easier. Whether they redesigned the package for a new purpose because sales were low is just a ploy.

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  Thomas Anderson at May. 30, 2012 - 10:25AM JST

  I never knew that this was a common problem...

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  Maitake at May. 30, 2012 - 10:30AM JST

  the only thing this gimmick and article about it are good for is a laugh.

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  Hide Suzuki at May. 30, 2012 - 10:32AM JST

  I don't know about you or your kids but I used to do this all the time according to my parents. They said my sister didn't have that problem, but they took out all the door knobs because me LOL.

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  tokyokawasaki at May. 30, 2012 - 10:50AM JST

  Is it April fools day today? Surely this is a joke?

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  TokyoGas at May. 30, 2012 - 11:09AM JST

  Cute kid and a nice thumbs up.

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  moonknightskye at May. 30, 2012 - 11:28AM JST

  i think they need to invest more on brain vitamins? or how about lesser cheaper one like "learn from mistake".. just like Probie-san said, doing it once or twice they can learn the dangers of those things... because not all the place the child will visit has this "waffle handle"

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  SquidBert at May. 30, 2012 - 11:47AM JST

  @Thomas Anderson

  I never knew that this was a common problem...

  Could it be that a couple of centuries of evolution in other countries where door handles has been common place for a long time, has weeded out this particular kind of klutz?

  I keep banging my head on the low door frames here in Japan, so it is obvious that other forms of klutzery has not been affected.

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  JapanGal at May. 30, 2012 - 12:13PM JST

  I tore one of my teddys on a door handle.

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  GW at May. 30, 2012 - 12:15PM JST

  LMAO! Haha I think this gizmo will clearly have kids butting their heads on door knobs even more than before!

  Look how fun it becomes LOL!

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  timeon at May. 30, 2012 - 12:16PM JST

  I was impressed with a program (I think it Was Discovery or Animal Planet) that showed how keepers at an animal sanctuary designed various tricks to feed the animals: hiding the food, placing it in difficult to reach spots, etc. There have been some studies that clearly showed that by just giving them the food, the animals quickly become dumb, lazy and incapable of survival on their one (pampered pets anyone?). I think the same is truth in our overly protective society, where kids are handicapped by paranoid parents who try to protect them as much as possible, incapacitating them for survival on their own in society

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  Gurukun at May. 30, 2012 - 12:46PM JST

  If it's that big of a problem in Japan, (which I never heard of), the door knob companies should change thier design.

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  Weasel at May. 30, 2012 - 01:32PM JST

  I didn't think that changing a doorknob handle was considered either a major spending or DIY project.

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  kibousha at May. 30, 2012 - 01:35PM JST

  I guess, with the number of children on the decline, you can't be over protective enough.

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  Bob Sneider at May. 30, 2012 - 01:41PM JST

  way to create a product to solve a problem that doesn't exist

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  ultradork at May. 30, 2012 - 01:47PM JST

  I have 2 young boys (7 & 3) in a house here, so I'm in the targeted demographic. Despite all our efforts to play outside as much as possible there are times (like days that end in "Y") when they are playing rough (sumo matches, etc) and bang & bump into things, occasionally with bruises and bumps as a result. I'd never buy anything like this but good job on the company - I can imagine the profit margin must be awesome, probably churn them out for 50 yen a pop.

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  Dennis Bauer at May. 30, 2012 - 01:49PM JST

  so where can i get the polystyrene wallpaper?

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  Frungy at May. 30, 2012 - 01:59PM JST

  Ultradork - Similar situation here. My 4 year old doesn't comprehend that walking somewhere will only take a tiny bit longer than running everywhere in the apartment at full speed. As a result she bumps into tables, door handles (now at about nose height), and even once tripped and wrecked a sliding door. Once the immediate pain is over she seems to remember that running is a bad idea .... oh wait, no, she doesn't.

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  heretoolong at May. 30, 2012 - 02:30PM JST

  I say let them continue learning the hard way then. Sorry.

  It's probably because said child is walking around with their face glued to their iPhone, DS, or PSP. Take it out of their hands and teach them to LOOK where they're walking. How hard is that?

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  GenevaMan at May. 30, 2012 - 03:41PM JST

  LOL the pic cracked me up.

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  cactusJack at May. 30, 2012 - 03:50PM JST

  I guess it doesn't matter if the kid gets hit by the door itself.

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  Pigumon at May. 30, 2012 - 03:57PM JST

  Was the "nobody knows why" a bad joke? The fact that it looks like a waffle might have to do with it.

  Anyway, I'd forgotten how much I don't like the posters here.

  Seriously, ever seen a kid run in a house before? Yes, kids run close to walls. Yes, kids run into doorknobs. This has nothing to do with fear mongering, this is a solution to a problem.

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  gogogo at May. 30, 2012 - 04:17PM JST

  Sorry this is called growing up, once bitten, twice shy.

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  Cos at May. 30, 2012 - 04:30PM JST

  I guess it doesn't matter if the kid gets hit by the door itself.

  My little brother, he passed through the door. He was a bit older than a toddler, much older, so the door suffered more than he. We couldn't stop laughing all day and we even forgot the parents would kill us. On the contrary, we rushed to them : "Hey come, see something funny...".

  so where can i get the polystyrene wallpaper?

  Konan Home Center. I put that in Winter. Great thermal isolation. And they have bits of moss like that, that would cost closer to 70 yen, for a dozen.

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  LFRAgain at May. 30, 2012 - 04:38PM JST

  These handle pads have been around for years and can be found in any department store's baby safety goods section alongside latches for cabinets and padding for table corners and cabinet edges. They retail for about 499 yen.

  Or you can just wander down to the local Daiso 100 yen Shop and pick one up for . . . wait for it . . . 100 yen!

  As for the waffle design, I'm with Pigumon. What's the big mystery about the product’s name? It does look like a waffle, both in texture and color. This article reads like the usual trying-so-very-hard-to-be-clever ex-pat mocking something in Japan, not because he possesses prescient insight, but rather because he is an ignorant jackass. To wit, a certain Steven Simonitch.

  Anyone with small children mastering gross motor skills like walking and running knows that there are countless hazards around the house that can leave, at the bare minimum, nasty bruises, or at worst, put out an eye. The ubiquitous horizontal door handle can be found in residential structures throughout Japan and can be a genuine danger to active children.

  And yes, my child at a year and a half still occasionally turns suddenly into objects that she’d have been better off avoiding.

  If Mr. Simonitch truly believes this should be cause for shame for my child, then I believe I have a foot that is looking to plant itself deeply in his woefully clueless – and not-quite-clever-enough behind.

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  KariHaruka at May. 30, 2012 - 06:59PM JST

  Apparently Japanese kids can’t stop walking face-first into door handles because Japanese department store chain Tokyu Hands has begun selling a polystyrene safety grip that slides over your door handle to protect children from such collisions.

  Well I won't be buying the thing that causes it :P

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  smithinjapan at May. 30, 2012 - 07:24PM JST

  Not to get technical, but this is 'stopping a child from walking into a door handle' at all, it's merely lessening the impact of when he or she does, which in and of itself could go against the nature of the object in question. A good whack into a door handle once might teach a kid to avoid it better in the future. A pretty useless invention unless your door handle is dangerously shaped in the first place.

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  iceshoecream at May. 30, 2012 - 08:00PM JST

  we'd like you to think about how many times as a child were you walking perfectly parallel to and so close to a wall that you, in a brief moment of distraction, rammed your forehead into the handle of a closed door?

  Not the handle but I do remember ramming into the glass door quite a few times.

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  YongYang at May. 30, 2012 - 08:13PM JST

  Bubble wrap from any parcel sent to your abode, folded over, wrapped as needed, and an elastic band. Viola.

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  zichi at May. 30, 2012 - 08:32PM JST

  Door handles? Guess this must mean modern buildings or houses? In my traditional house, the only handles are some mini ones on the kitchen unit drawers. But really, sounds like a scam?

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  Green Panda at May. 30, 2012 - 09:28PM JST

  Laugh now but when the kids are grown up you can say we took every available measure to ensure your safety, including protection from door handle injury.

  That kid, she's so darn cute. Good acting job. :)

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  Laguna at May. 30, 2012 - 09:32PM JST

  As my mother once said: "It's amazing that any of you children survived at all."

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  whiskeysour at May. 30, 2012 - 10:59PM JST

  Maybe it's the mother's fault and DOESN'T teach the kid to wait at a proper distance from the door HANDLE.

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  napoleancomplex at May. 31, 2012 - 05:02AM JST

  wait, I'm confused.. Japanese youngins are walking into door handles BECAUSE Japanese department store chain Tokyu Hands has begun selling a polystyrene safety grip??

  wtf?

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  Triumvere at May. 31, 2012 - 07:23AM JST

  That is the cutest depiction of running into a door handle ever.

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  Namaman at May. 31, 2012 - 07:33AM JST

  I'm sure most of the comments here come from people who don't have young kids running around their japanese apartments. As a parent of a 3.5 year old boy, I really worry about the door handles in our apartment, and at one time I had even wrapped some bubble wrap one handle that seemed particularly dangerous. I'm not so worried about him bashing his head on one, as that would be a good lesson learnt, but I am worried about it traumatically inserting itself into his eye socket. I for one think these things from Tokyu hands are a great idea, although 500% overpriced.

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  Andrew Decena at May. 31, 2012 - 07:51AM JST

  Either wrap the door handle with foam and tape for less than half the price, or just install the door the handles higher up on the door. Problem solved! ;)

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  Namaman at May. 31, 2012 - 08:48AM JST

  We’d like you to think about how many times as a child were you walking perfectly parallel to and so close to a wall that you, in a brief moment of distraction, rammed your forehead into the handle of a closed door? If your answer is greater than or equal to “one,” you should be ashamed of yourself.

  This comment is both condescending and shows a complete lack of insight. It's not when the door is closed, it's when the door is open. Lets take the example of the door in my apartment that leads from the living room into the hallway. This door stays open mostly to get air circulating through the rooms. It swings inwards into the hallway, so the sheer act of walking through the open doorway brings you in close proximity to the door handle. Now imagine an individual, or even a group of kids doing what kids do. Running, chasing each other, out of control, pushing and shoving, and generally enjoying themselves around the apartment. It doesn't take much to imagine a worst case scenario. And for me, worst case is a 7 inch long tapered door handle inserted into an eye socket.

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  Zach Odle at May. 31, 2012 - 09:35AM JST

  lol

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  LH10 at May. 31, 2012 - 10:13AM JST

  WHAT THE HELL? lol! japangal

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  chiemi1967 at May. 31, 2012 - 10:25AM JST

  "Look Mommy, now it doesn't hurt to open the door with my head anymore!"

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  Tomasz Stasinski at May. 31, 2012 - 10:57AM JST

  I urgently need to stop walking into the door frame headers. Funnily, I didn't have this problem overseas, but I must have gotten dumber since moving to Japan. I'm not sure what the problem is, maybe they should be marked more clearly or padded with a header waffle?

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  luap at May. 31, 2012 - 11:58AM JST

  Let's assume it is a problem (needs quite some imagination though) then here is the solution and it will cost no Yen whatsoever. Take out the handle, and put it back with the handle upwards. Easy to open the door with your elbow, small children don't run into the door handle anymore...

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  Carcharodon at May. 31, 2012 - 12:24PM JST

  Saw the same things in Daiso, but they were marketed for the elderly (arthritis etc) Tokyu Hands is massively overpriced, Daiso often has the exact same things.

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  Cricky at May. 31, 2012 - 01:38PM JST

  How about raising the height of door handles, it's a problem so fix it rather than accessorizing it?

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  bass4funk at May. 31, 2012 - 02:06PM JST

  WTH, so Japan has come from making great products, electronics, cars and now they are making door handle cushions, my, my how things have changed in Japan.

  My daughter hit her head twice, after that, she quickly learned from experience to avoid from getting hit in the head, natural, instinctive far better and saved myself some cash of having to by such Kitsch!.

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  luilui at May. 31, 2012 - 02:38PM JST

  Apparently Japanese kids can't stop walking face-first into door handles because Japanese department store chain Tokyu Hands has begun selling a polystyrene safety grip that slides over your door handle to protect children from such collisions.

  shouldn't the "because" be "so", or "therefore".. ? a bit of editing would have eliminated confusion, but i guess we get the drift of it.

  put sponge onto door handle, so kids would still walk into door handles, but not as painful.. this may cost alot as im sure there are many doors in each house/aparto..

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  chuichi at May. 31, 2012 - 08:51PM JST

  Love that cute picture! I could use with one though, sometimes the handles jutting out catches my arm or my clothing!

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  LFRAgain at May. 31, 2012 - 10:26PM JST

  "Look Mommy, now it doesn't hurt to open the door with my head anymore!"

  Okay, that was pretty funny.

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  Badge213 at Jun. 01, 2012 - 03:37AM JST

  If you got a problem with your kids always running into the door handle, then you should change to a door knob.

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  Badge213 at Jun. 01, 2012 - 03:39AM JST

  That picture cracks me up.

  I can crash into the door all i want now.

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  Laguna at Jun. 01, 2012 - 11:53PM JST

  "How to stop kids from walking into door handles" -

  Make it hurt so they will not do it again.

  Seems this product does the opposite.

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  JinaSensei at Jun. 04, 2012 - 04:04PM JST

  I'd buy em. Who wants their kids to get hurt in any fashion? I don't. I see them as a great way to prevent eyes from getting poked and knots adorning foreheads. Some see them as stupid I see them as child proofing the home so I don't to spend time or money in the ER.

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  Serrano at Jun. 11, 2012 - 09:32PM JST

  Apparently Japanese kids can't stop walking face-first into door handles"

  Har!