CHINA-FREE PRODUCTS: Dangerous If Swallowed: Aqua Dots Pulled From Shelf

CHINA-FREE

DEFINITION chi-na-free adj. A term proposed for use on food labels to show that products are not made in China.

CONTEXT In light of recent health and safety scares regarding Chinese-made food and products, a U.S.-based company called Food for Health International has announced plans to put "China-free" stickers on its goods. The subtext: These products won't make you sick or have harmful contaminants like melamine.

USAGE Given recent recalls of items from toys to toothpaste, China-free labeling could catch on, though consumers would do well to remember that not all products from China are tainted and not all tainted products are from China.

Friday, November 9, 2007

Dangerous If Swallowed: Aqua Dots Pulled From Shelf

A popular toy is pulled from department store shelves, just in time for the holiday season. Aqua Dots were used to create colorful artistic designs by simply adding water. An investigation into the toy was launched after some children, who mistakenly ate the pellets, became sick.

“They look like candy, says Jennifer Freeman, owner of Toy Up. “They look exactly like candy. And if children see things like that, the first place it’s going is into their mouths.”

One toddler, 20-month-old Jack Esses from Jacksonville, fell into a coma after eating the dots in October. He was later treated and released from at Arkansas Children's Hospital. Research showed that an unknown coating on the pellets led to the children's sicknesses. As it metabolized in their bodies, it changed to the chemical GHB, commonly known as a date rape drug. MORE>>