For millions of Americans, swimming pool season isn’t far around the corner (if it ever stops snowing, that is). But before we’ve even strapped on our floaties, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced a warning on those huge, inflatable “water-walking” balls, which the CPSC says present the double threat of suffocation and drowning. [More]
Quality & Safety
Radiation Found In US Milk Supply In Trace Amounts
By 3.31.11
Great, now kids have a new excuse for not drinking their milk: US milk samples from Spokane, Washington have tested positive for a radioactive iodine blown over from Japan, the EPA announced Wednesday. The amounts are small, only 0.8 pico-curies, according to tests taken March 25 by the agency, and are 5,000 times below the FDA’s “intervention level.” [More]
Johnson & Johnson Keeps The Tylenol Recall Express Rolling
By 3.30.11
In advance of its Worst Company In America Sweet 16 bout against WellPoint, Johnson & Johnson has given us all a reminder of why they made the list to begin with, announcing yet another recall of a Tylenol product. [More]
Lawsuit: Man's Monster Energy Drink Flavored With Dead Mouse
By 3.30.11
A man in Washington state hasn’t consumed a beverage from a can in more than a year. It’s hard to blame him: he claims that more than a year ago, he discovered a mouse at the bottom of his Monster energy drink. Now he’s suing Hansen Beverage Company, the maker of Monster. His lawyer and Monster’s insurer ran tests, and independent lab results prove the mouse’s identity. [More]
Baby Formula Is A Prized Item For Shoplifting Rings, Drug Smugglers
By 3.30.11
Raise your hand if you’re surprised to hear that baby formula is a popular choice of not only shoplifting rings, but drug smugglers who use it to cut heroin and cocaine. Yes, we’re shocked, too! [More]
71,000 Volkswagen Jettas Recalled Because Honking Your Horn Shouldn't Shut Off Your Engine
By 3.29.11
If you have a 2011 Volkswagen Jetta, you may not want to go around tooting your own horn — because it might just shut your engine off. [More]
Even More "Toxic Waste" Candy Lives Up To Its Branding
By 3.28.11
In January, the people behind the Toxic Waste Nuclear Sludge candy bars announced a not-that-surprising recall for possible lead contamination. And in keeping with the company’s brand message, more candy has been recalled for the same reason. [More]
Food Dyes May Exacerbate Hyperactive Behavior In Some Kids
By 3.28.11
It has long been suspected that kids with ADHD might be having some sort of reaction to common synthetic food dyes — but now the FDA is going to formally consider any links between the dyes and hyperactivity in children, including over 30 different studies on the topic. [More]
Remember The Flames Of The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory
By 3.25.11
100 years ago today, over 100 factory workers died in a fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City. The deaths could have been prevented if management had implemented basic safety precautions, but they chose not to, choosing profits over people’s lives. Here is a snippet from a great PBS documentary on the tragedy, starting at the moment the flames started to lick the walls, which would soon become gouged by the fingernails of the panicked workers trapped inside. [More]
Del Monte Recalls Cantaloupes For Possible Salmonella Contamination
By 3.24.11
Watch out for Del Monte cantaloupes — the Coral Gables, Fla. company has issued a recall with the help of the FDA of 4,992 cartons, each containing four sleeves of their three-pack of cantaloupes, as they may possibly be contaminated with Salmonella Panama. [More]
Theater Owners Don't Want You To Know A Large Popcorn Is Like Eating 3 Big Macs
By 3.23.11
The FDA is reportedly set to announce a decision that would force movie theater operators to post calorie counts next to their items in the same way that restaurant chains must. Not surprisingly, the theater owners are popping mad about this possibility. [More]
Food From Four Japanese Prefectures Barred From Entering U.S.
By 3.23.11
Following the news that radiation has been detected in tap water and food products in areas closest to the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan, the FDA has announced that many imported food products from prefectures near the plant will not be allowed to enter the U.S. [More]
United Had Advance Signs That Plane Would Almost Ignite Olsen Twin
By 3.22.11
You may remember the United Airlines flight from last May that could have resulted in a burnt Olsen twin if the pilots hadn’t reacted so quickly to a cockpit fire. Well, newly released documents from the National Transportation Safety Board show that there had been at least two related incidents on that same plane in the days leading up to the fire. [More]
Docs: Keep Kids In Rear-Facing Seats Until 2, Booster Seats Until They're Old Enough To Steal Car
By 3.21.11
The goodhearted folks at the American Academy of Pediatrics have revised their 2002 recommendations for how long children should remain in rear-facing car seats. You can probably guess they didn’t shorten that amount of time. [More]
Radiation Detected In Tap Water And Food From Farms In Japan
By 3.19.11
Cause for more worry in Japan, as the latest news about the damaged nuclear reactor isn’t good — traces of radioactive iodine have been detected in Tokyo tap water, officials said Saturday. Radation was also detected at spinach and milk farms near the Fukushima Dai-ichi complex. [More]
FDA Panel Recommends Ban On Menthol Cigarettes
By 3.18.11
If you like your cigarettes minty fresh, you might want to start stocking up now. Earlier today an FDA panel announced that a ban on menthol smokes would be a good thing for the public health. [More]
Price Of Premature Birth-Preventing Drug Goes From $10 To $1,500 Per Dose
By 3.15.11
After the Food and Drug Administration granted KV Pharmaceuticals sole rights to produce progesterone, a drug that prevents premature births in mothers, the company has begun charging $1,500 per dose of a drug that formerly cost $10. [More]
Get Breaking Texts About Product Recalls That Impact Kid's Lives
By 3.11.11
You could have recalled products in your home or school that put children’s lives at risk. But by texting “SAFE” to 76666, Consumer Reports will text you a daily digest of the latest breaking and relevant product recalls right to your mobile device. With it, you’ll never be the last one at the punch bowl to know about the latest salmonella-tainted peanut butter or strangulation hazard sweatshirt drawstring. The service has no charge, but message and data rates from your wireless provider may apply. [More]
