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Stores are scrambling to remove recalled toy

Aqua Dots break down into a "date rape" drug when swallowed.

By Times Wires
Published November 9, 2007

The toddler stumbled around like he was drunk, vomited and passed out - regaining consciousness at times only to vomit again. The boy had just swallowed a popular toy that contains a chemical that turns into a powerful "date rape" drug when eaten.

"I thought he was going to die. I didn't want to tell my kids that, of course, but I thought he was going to die," said Shelby Esses, whose 20-month-old son Jacob swallowed a handful of Spin Master Aqua Dots on Oct. 30. "It was horrible."

In the latest recall involving Chinese toymakers, the Consumer Product Safety Commission ordered Aqua Dots off store shelves on Wednesday. In addition to Jacob Esses of Arkansas, at least one child in the United States and four in Australia were hospitalized after swallowing the beads.

On Thursday, a day after the recall, dozens of Aqua Dots sets were still stacked on shelves inside a Tampa Wal-Mart. They were immediately removed, however, after an assistant store manager learned of the recall from a St. Petersburg Times reporter. The manager said the store's registers automatically rang up the toys as "Do Not Sell" items.

Aqua Dots, a popular holiday toy sold by Australia's Moose Enterprises, are beads that can be arranged into designs and fused when sprayed with water. The heavily advertised item appeared on many toy experts' list of must-have holiday toys.

In Australia, the toy was named toy of the year at an industry function. But the toys, known as Bindeez in that country, were ordered off store shelves on Tuesday when officials learned the three children had been hospitalized.

China's toy industry has been under close scrutiny since earlier this year when Mattel Inc. recalled more than 21-million Chinese-made toys worldwide.

In the case of Aqua Dots, scientists say a chemical coating on the beads, when ingested, metabolizes into gamma hydroxy butyrate, the so-called date rape drug. The compound can induce unconsciousness, seizures, drowsiness, coma and death.

The toys were supposed to use 1,5-pentanediol, a nontoxic compound found in glue but instead contained the harmful 1,4-butanediol, which is widely used in cleaners and plastics.

It's not clear why 1,4-butanediol was substituted. But there is a significant difference in price between the two chemicals. The Chinese online trading platform ChemNet China lists the price of 1,4-butanediol at between about $1,350-$2,800 per metric ton, while the price for 1,5-pentanediol is about $9,700 per metric ton.

Shelby Esses, 30, said her son was playing with his sister's set the day before Halloween and then suddenly became ill. At the hospital, Jacob was in a coma for about six hours as doctors performed tests. Then, within minutes, he woke and was back to his normal self.

"I thought that the Aqua Dots had to have done something, but I wasn't sure because I didn't think they were toxic," she said. "There was no warning on the box that said they were toxic. It just said that they were a choking hazard."

What to do with your Aqua Dots set?

Consumers should immediately take the toy away from children and contact Spin Master for free replacement beads or a toy of equal value. Contact Spin Master at (800) 622-8339 between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, or visit the firm's Web site at www.aquadotsrecall.com.

[Last modified November 9, 2007, 01:43:24]