Southbury Store Affected—

Baby’s Bliss Water Removed;

Cribs Also Facing Nationwide Recall

SOUTHBURY — Starlight Baby, a Southbury retailer, was listed among three state locations participating in a voluntary recall and removal of an apple-flavored beverage which, in another market, was found to contain a parasite. The store owner, however, said Starlight Baby never carried the apple-flavored version of the colic treatment named in the recall.

A state Department of Consumer Protection release on September 24 said the agency removed the product following a voluntary recall by the manufacturer and a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory warning consumers not to drink or serve the beverage.

The product is Baby’s Bliss Gripe Water, apple flavor, with a code of 26952V and expiration date of October 2008 — shown as “10/08” on the label — distributed by MOM Enterprises, Inc, of San Rafael, Calif. The FDA confirmed through laboratory analysis the presence of cryptosporidium after investigating the illness of a 6-week-old infant in Minnesota who consumed the product. Cryptosporidium is a parasite that can cause intestinal infections.

“We have identified three stores in the state that have sold this beverage, and we have made sure that the product has been removed from sale,” Consumer Protection Commissioner Jerry Farrell, Jr, said. “Consumers who have this item at home should be sure it is not coded and dated as described in the FDA warning. If it is, please do not use the beverage, but discard it immediately.”

The three stores known to have carried Baby’s Bliss Gripe Water are Over the Moon, Avon; Bissell Pharmacy, Ridgefield; and Starlight Baby, Southbury.

All of the above stores have been contacted by the Department of Consumer Protection and are aware of the recall.

But Starlight Baby owner Maureen Vizvary told The Bee this week that her store does not carry the apple-flavored colic treatment listed in the recall. “I think we came on the list because we sell that manufacturer’s unflavored Gripe Water,” she said Tuesday.

The most common symptom of infection is watery diarrhea. Other symptoms can include dehydration, weight loss, stomach cramps or pain, fever, nausea, and vomiting.

Symptoms generally begin two to ten days after becoming infected with the parasite and generally last one to two weeks. While most people with healthy immune systems will recover without treatment, the infection could be serious or life-threatening for certain individuals.

Infants, children, and pregnant women are susceptible to dehydration resulting from diarrhea, which can be life-threatening. Individuals with weakened immune systems are also at risk for a more serious and life-threatening form of illness.

Parents of children who have recently consumed apple-flavored Baby’s Bliss Gripe Water and have these symptoms should seek immediate medical attention. Parents and caregivers who have given this product to their infants and children should be alert for diarrhea and other signs of cryptosporidium infection.

The product was sold in a four-ounce plastic bottle packaged inside of a cardboard carton, labeled with the following: Baby’s Bliss. Pediatrician Recommended Gripe Water. Apple Flavor.         

MOM Enterprises, Inc is fully cooperating with FDA’s investigation into the cause of the contamination and is recalling all potentially contaminated products. FDA continues to investigate and will provide updates as more information becomes available. Consumers can call the FDA at 888-723-3366.

Cribs Recalled

In other recall news, about one million Simplicity and Graco cribs are being recalled after three children became entrapped in their cribs and died of suffocation, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said last Friday. Starlight Baby in Southbury does not carry either line of those cribs, Ms Vizvary said.

Two infants, a 6-month-old and a 9-month-old, died in the recalled cribs, which were sold through May 2007. A 1-year-old child died in a newer model of the cribs, which has not been recalled but is being investigated by the safety agency, CPSC officials said.

CPSC spokesman Ed Kang would not comment on when or where the children died. Simplicity spokesman Joe Householder said the company will not release further details about the deaths out of respect for the families.

In all three deaths, the consumer had installed the drop-rail side of the crib upside down, the CPSC said. This creates a gap in the crib that children can slide into and suffocate.

Seven other infants have been entrapped in the cribs, according to the CPSC. There have been 55 reports of the cribs’ drop sides detaching or the hardware failing to hold the side to the crib.

Simplicity Inc, of Reading, Penn., is listed as manufacturer of all the cribs, which were made in China. The recalled cribs were sold nationwide, under the Simplicity or Graco brands, from January 1998 through May 2007. The recall involves multiple models and models numbers.

None of the cribs that Simplicity currently supplies to stores is included in the recall, the company said in a statement.

But CPSC is telling consumers who have the newer versions not covered by the recall to check to make sure the drop side is installed right side up and securely attached. For more information, consumers can contact Simplicity at 888-593-9274.