Quick reference links:

• Nintendo's Health and Safety Manual for Wii: http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/wiisafety.jsp
• Request replacement wrist straps: http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/strapreplace.jsp
• Request Wii Jackets for your remote: http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/jacket/jacketrequest.jsp

Some of the Wii's stranger news headlines after launch of the console were the sorts of things you never associated with video games: people throwing Wii remotes at other people, into walls, and in at least one documented case, through a plasma television. Usually we're worried about strained thumbs and wrists, but motion control brought a new dimension to gaming, and novel new risks. I've run up against a few of these myself:

• I broke a Wii remote wrist strap while playing Wii Sports baseball. I didn't lose grip of the remote, but while pitching I pulled the remote back to throw, and the wrist strap was a little loose and slid down my arm. When I threw forward, it gripped the thicker part of my arm down where it had slid and I snapped it clean off.
• I have hit Maggie with the remote a few times, especially while playing Wii Sports bowling, when she would sneak up behind me while playing.
• I once hit myself in the throat with the nunchuk cord while playing Madden NFL 07. The motion to catch a pass is to lift both controllers up, and the cord isn't very long, and....well, you work it out. :-)
• I've pulled muscles playing games with vigorous motion, like Wii Sports, Madden NFL 07, and Wii Fit.

I've never thrown my remote (well, not accidentally anyway ;-) and I've never broken any objects with it, but there have been plenty of stories in the media describing people's misadventures with their Wii. Really, most of it is just common sense: Play in moderation. Rest when you need to. Don't be stupid. Nintendo maintains health and safety manuals for all of their systems on their support web site. Their Wii manual appears at http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/wiisafety.jsp and describes some issues to be aware of. Some are general to all video game systems, and some relate specifically to the Wii. To summarize:

• About 0.025% (1 in 4000) of people across the population are susceptible to seizures triggered by visual stimuli, including video games. The page describes symptoms and precautions to take.
• All video games carry the risk of repetitive stress injuries to fingers, thumbs, and wrists, but the Wii's motion controls take that a step further, and can involve arms and shoulders (and even feet and legs, I suppose, once Balance Board games get traction in the mainstream). The media has described "Wii-itis" as tendonitis associated with playing motion games on Wii, especially Wii Sports. Nintendo recommends taking regular hourly breaks from playing, and to stop if certain symptoms (such as numbness) occur or if any persist after gameplay.
• All video games, and personal computers, for that matter, carry the risk of eyestrain. Recommended precautions are the same as for repetitive stress injuries.
• All video games can cause motion sickness in some people, especially in some kids and young teens. A little rest will take care of it.
• Your Wii contains, among other things, electricity, radio transmitters, and lasers. Getting stupid with your Wii hardware can hurt you. Don't fool with electricity, and don't jury-rig your power supply. Don't hack the DVD drive and look at the laser beam. Something you might not think of, however, is that the Wii remote is a radio transmitter, and Nintendo recommends a certain safe distance from medical devices like pacemakers (which is important when you consider how many elderly people are getting Wiis).
• A few types of damage to your stuff can occur under certain circumstances. Some are obvious, like don't knock your Wii over when it's reading a disk. Others are old problems and shouldn't happen, but it's still remotely possible, like screen burn-in. Some, like battery leakage, should always be in the back of your mind to watch out for (though as quickly as the Wii remote eats up batteries, I doubt this will be a huge problem).

There's a whole section relating to the Wii remote, specifically.

• Always wear your wrist strap. Very early Wii models had wrist straps with thin attachment loops that could break under some circumstances. Nintendo redesigned the wrist strap to make the attachment loop thicker, and all new remotes now include the upgraded wrist strap. Nintendo will provide free replacement wrist straps for the asking at this web page.
• If you've ever accidentally hit a loved one, especially a child, with the Wii remote, you know that it hurts! They're not light. Nintendo now provides padded wraps for the remote, dubbed the Wii Jacket, and it's included with all new remotes. Nintendo will provide free Wii Jackets to those who bought early systems. Request yours at this web page.
• Always maintain a safe distance between you and the rest of the room. Nintendo recommends 2 to 3 feet of personal space for this purpose.

With the addition of the Balance Board, now people can get stupid with their feet. Although Nintendo does not mention precautions for the Balance Board on their Health and Safety Page, some tips can be gleaned from the Balance Board support page, and various screens in Wii Fit warn you about these as well:

• Always place the Balance Board on a stable surface where it won't move around. Nothing quite like the Balance Board not staying where you expect it to be when you put your foot down.
• Make sure your Balance Board has that 2 to 3 feet of personal space, too.
• Make sure you watch where you're stepping. It's possible to twist an ankle, for example, if you inadvertently step on the edge of the Balance Board.
• The Balance Board is designed to be used barefoot, and Nintendo advises against wearing socks because they will not have the required grip (in spite of the confirmed existence of promotional Wii Fit socks).
• Use the included foot extensions if the Balance Board touches soft floor surfaces, such deeper pile carpeting. But be careful -- I've found that those extensions don't stick on real tightly. I asked a Nintendo representative about this, and she said you can push pretty hard safely to get them to stay permanently, but don't hit them with anything to drive them on (as I then put down the Wii Hammer....)

Nobody likes getting hurt. Certainly nobody likes getting made fun of from getting hurt doing something silly with their Wii. If you have any suggestions for additions to this page, e-mail me!