Little boy accidentally swallows AirPod after receiving them for Christmas

A little boy has narrowly avoided a Christmas catastrophe after accidentally swallowing one of his gifts: an Apple AirPod.

The wireless headphones were at the top of many kids' Christmas lists this year, but Kiara Stroud is regretting gifting her seven-year-old son a pair after a dash to the hospital last Saturday.

Stroud's son, QJ, had been holding one of the AirPods between his lips when he suddenly choked on the gadget, before accidentally swallowing it.

Stroud, who was at work delivering mail when it happened, received a surprisingly calm call from her mother, who informed her that QJ needed to be taken to a hospital near their Atlanta, USA home.

"I immediately, like U-turn my truck and I'm headed back to the station," Stroud told WSB-TV.

At the hospital x-rays revealed the AirPod sitting in his stomach, but doctors agreed that it wouldn't have to be surgically removed.

Instead, they informed QJ and his mother that they'd just have to wait for the AirPod to make it's own way out of his body.

Stroud took to Facebook after the scare to warn other parents of the hazards associated with AirPods being gifted to young children.

Posting the x-ray of QJ's stomach to social media, Stroud wrote: " I can't make this up… Thanks for all of the prayers, we're home. No more AirPods for this kid."

She later added that she wasn't mad at her son, despite how much money the AirPods had cost her.

"We didn't yell at him, didn't curse, didn't ask why, didn't tell him he was too old, didn't shame him, and didn't make the situation worse," she wrote.

"He already felt bad. He was scared and nervous. We let him know that everything was going to be okay, stayed calm, and it helped him relax."

It looks like QJ will be sticking to wired headphones for the foreseeable future.

The safety information Apple provides for AirPods warns that "some iPhone accessories may present a choking hazard to small children".