Look out for speeding champagne corks tonight!

Seeing in the New Year with a glass of bubbly is a fine tradition, but a leading US eye doctor warns that we should look out for popping corks - as they may cause you to end up in A&E with an eye injury.

Mark Melson, assistant professor of Ophthalmology at the Vanderbilt Eye Institute, cautions: “Eye injuries from flying champagne corks, especially around the holidays, are fairly common". And urges revellers to take care when opening champagne bottles to ensure it's done safely.

He warns that the pressure from a champagne cork can be up to 3 times more than the pressure in a car tyre. And champagne or sparkling wine corks can travel at speeds up to 50-60 miles per hour!

How to pop a champagne cork safely

Dr Melson gives the following advice on how to have a happy AND safe New Year:

• Make sure your bottle of bubbly is chilled. If left warm the pressure is more likely to build
• Don’t shake the bottle. It increases the speed of the cork upon opening. (You also lose more bubbly!)
• Place a towel over the top of the bottle to provide an additional shield
• Keep the bottle tilted at a 45-degree angle, pointing away from people
• Hold the cork while twisting the bottle to break the seal. Keep your hand over the cork
• Never use a corkscrew to open a bottle of champagne. It will only serve as a larger, more dangerous projectile

If an injury does occur:

If you do get hit in the eye by a whizzing cork, the good doctor recommends seeking medical help immediately and warns not to attempt to manipulate the eye in any way.

This article was published on Thu 31 December 2009