Parent Extremis

Please read the information below. Ikea is a great store that we all love. I know I have tons of furniture and supplies in my house from them. However, there is one product that has entangled a child. Please read below to be sure you do not have this product in your home, and what to do if you or someone you know does own this item.

Strangulation Death of a Child Prompts Recall of Roman Blinds; Sold Exclusively at IKEA

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: IRIS and ALVINE Roman Blinds

Units: About 670,000 (an additional 4.8 million were sold outside of the United States)

Distributor: IKEA Home Furnishings, of Conshohocken, Pa.

Hazard: Strangulations can occur when a child places his/her neck in an exposed inner cord on the backside of the roman blinds.

Incidents/Injuries: On April 4, 2008, a 1-year-old girl in Greenwich, Conn. became entangled in the inner cord of an IKEA Roman Blind and strangled. The child was in a portable playpen that was located underneath a fully lowered roman blind. She was found partially suspended with the inner cord of the blind wrapped twice around her neck.

Description: This recall involves all sizes of IRIS and ALVINE Roman Blinds in white. The blinds have a sewn-in label at the top edge of the blind with the IKEA logotype, article name (IRIS or ALVINE), 5-digit supplier number 19799 or 21369, four digit date stamp (YYWW) and the words “Made in India”. On the bottom edge of the blind there is a sewn-in orange/white safety warning label. The blinds are made from 100% cotton.

Sold at: IKEA stores nationwide from July 2005 through June 2008 for between $7 and $30.

Manufactured in: India

Remedy: Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled Roman Blinds and return them to any IKEA store to obtain a full refund.

Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact IKEA toll-free at (888) 966-4532 anytime, or visit the firm’s Web site at www.ikea-usa.com

Note: CPSC reminds consumers to examine all Roman Blinds and shades in their homes. If looped pull cords are present or exposed inner cords are found on the back of blinds or shades and children are in the home or occasionally visit your home, please consider replacing them with blinds or shades that do not have exposed pull cords or inner cords.

Earlier this year the news story broke announcing that Melamine had been found in infant formula made and sold in China. The result was over 50,000 ill babies and sadly, a few dead babies. Melamine is a chemical with many uses, among which is the ability to appear as a protein when dangerously and illegally mixed into food substances.

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says there is NO SAFE LEVEL of Melamine in infant formula. A contradiction indeed, they are also telling parents not to overreact or change their baby’s diet at this time. The levels found are extremely low, however, you be the judge. The FDA has established a section of their website for Melamine information.

Yahoo! Reports from the Associated Press:

According to FDA data for tests of 77 infant formula samples, a trace concentration of melamine was detected in one product — Mead Johnson’s Infant Formula Powder, Enfamil LIPIL with Iron. An FDA spreadsheet shows two tests were conducted on the Enfamil, with readings of 0.137 and 0.14 parts per million.

Three tests of Nestle’s Good Start Supreme Infant Formula with Iron detected an average of 0.247 parts per million of cyanuric acid, a melamine byproduct.

The FDA said last month that the toxicity of cyanuric acid is under study, but that meanwhile it is “prudent” to assume that its potency is equal to that of melamine.

And while the FDA said tests of 18 samples of formula made by Abbott Laboratories, including its Similac brand, did not detect melamine, spokesman Colin McBean said some company tests did find the chemical. He did not identify the specific product or the number of positive tests.

Questions and Answers to you questions about Melamine. What is Melamine? What do I do if I think my infant formula contains Melamine? Melamine Information? Symptoms of Melamine poisoning?

Enfamil released a statement today saying that the FDA testing was inaccurate.

Well, folks, more products have been recalled. Products that your children might be playing with this minute. Please read below and make a note of these toys and the contact info in case you or someone you know owns these toys.

RECALLED: Cobra Electronics Children’s Two-Way Radios with Rechargeable Batteries. The batteries can leak and cause chemical burns. These toys were sold at Toys R’ Us in August and September of this year for about $30. They are made in China. If you need more information, contact Cobra Electronics at (888) 252.9889 or visit www.cobra.com.

If you return this product you will get a free-replacement and a 20% off discount towards a future purchase.

RECALLED: JA-RU recalls My Little Train Classics Toy Trains because of a choking hazard. The toy contains small parts that can detach and act as a choking hazard for young children. Made in China they are imported by JA-RU located in Jacksonville, Florida. They were sold nationwide from March 2007 through October 2008 for about $2. JA-RU can be reached at (800) 231.3470.

RECALLED: The Consumer Product Safety Commission, in conjunction with CORAL has recalled Swim N’ Score Dive Sticks because they pose a risk of impalement injury. They were sold at Modell’s Sporting Goods Stores from August 1999 until October 2008. Children can fall or land on the sticks in shallow water and suffer impalement, eye and facial injuries. If you have any of these, please contact Modell’s at (800) 275.6633 or visit www.modells.com/recall

To sign up to receive regular email notices about product safety and recalls visit the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s website at www.cpsc.gov.

Johnson & Johnson, a Merck Consumer Pharmaceutical Company has announced this week, November 10, 2008, an urgent nationwide recall of the Infants’ Mylicon Gas Relief Dye-Free Drops. The medication is an over-the-counter simethicone-based formula to relieve gas. A batch of the medication is being recalled due to the possibility of metal fragments in the medication. This is a precautionary level recall and the potential for serious medical illness is low. It is, however, possible that small metal fragments reached the medication during the manufacturing process.

If you have given this product to your child you shouldn’t worry, any problem should be temporary and resolve without treatment. You should contact your doctor or pediatrician if you suspect you gave this medication to your child.

The two lots of Infants’ MYLICON® GAS RELIEF DYE FREE drops non-staining 1 oz. bottles included in the recall are:

Product Code #	Lot #	Exp	Product
71683791111-1	SMF007	09/10	Infants’ MYLICON® Gas Relief Dye Free Non-Staining Drops 1 oz.
71683791111-1	SMF008	09/10	Infants’ MYLICON® Gas Relief Dye Free Non-Staining Drops 1 oz.

Consumers can find the lot numbers on the bottom of the box containing the product and also on the lower left side of the sticker on the product bottle.

If you have questions about this recall you can reach the company at this number, 1-800-222-9435 or online at www.mylicon.com .

SOURCE

Once again I am taking a break from parenting issues to pass along some serious information that might help save your baby or the life of a baby you know.  Please please read below and make sure you do not have any of these products. These recalls are direct from the Consumer Product Safety Commission, CPSC.  You can click on the link for further information about what to do if you have one of these recalled products.

First, there was a recall of 2,000 Convertible Cribs by Playkids USA.  This crib can entrap and suffocate an infant, and in fact, a five-month old baby in Brooklyn died in August as a direct result of this faulty product.  The sides of these cribs are made of mesh that expands.   A gap can open up between the mattress and the side and an infant can slip between the side and mattress.   With any crib or pack n’ play be sure that the mattress is very tight fitting.  Mesh sides are designed so that a child who rolls over and cannot roll back is able to breathe through the mesh siding.  But that mesh should be very tight.

There was also a recall of about 800 Baby Walkers made by the My Way Corporation of San Juan, Puerto Rico.  These walkers were sold exclusively in Puerto Rico too.  The hazard of this walker is that it does not meet the voluntary standard size and can fit through a standard size doorway.  It is also not designed to stop at the edge of a stair as most walkers are nowadays.

EcoChildsPlay is giving away a free Medela Nursing Camisole.  Visit the site and enter this awesome giveaway.

Medela products are and have always been free of BPA.

I don’t know that this site was intended for information like what is to follow, but this is a Parenting site and I suspect most of the visitors are PARENTS and there is crucial - life-saving information that needs to be passed on and shared and spread around, NOW. Please read on, this is important.

Another baby product has been recalled. The Simplicity Drop Side Crib is being recalled because there are problems with the crib’s hardware size. The drop side can come off of the track and detach. That creates a gap that can trap and suffocate a baby.

About 600,000 of these cribs have been sold by the following retailers, AAFES, of Dallas, Texas; Babies“R”Us, of Wayne, N.J.; Burlington Coat Factory/Baby Depot, of Burlington, N.J.; K’s Merchandise (out of business); Meijer Distribution Inc., of Grand Rapids, Mich.; Nebraska Furniture Mart, of Omaha, Neb.; ShopKo, of Green Bay, Wis.;Target, of Minneapolis, Minn.; Wal-Mart Stores Inc, of Bentonville, Ark.

Here is the description of the affected cribs:

Description: This recall of Simplicity drop side cribs involves models that used a different style of hardware from those cribs recalled in September 2007. The recalled model numbers include: 8620, 8745, 8748, 8755, 8756, 8778, 8810, and 8994. The recalled drop side cribs have a date code, which can be found on a label on the headboard under the mattress support, which ends in 05DH, 05GB, 06DH, 06GB, 07DH or 07GB (examples: 1806 DH or 0507 GB). The recalled model names include: Aspen and Crib N Changer Combo, Gabrielle, Camille, Providence and Shenandoah. Only the brand name “Simplicity” can be seen on the label on the headboard.

For more information about who to contact if you or someone you know has this crib, click HERE.

Greetings!

I’m the new writer for Parent Extremis. I’m no more qualified to write for this site than I am to care for my own seven week old baby. So it should be a fun ride! No, really, I plan to use this site to evaluate and discuss a variety of parenting issues. I hope you will stay tuned for some potentially riveting, or at least mildly interesting discussions of all the issues I can dream up including breast versus bottle feeding, sleep issues (co-sleeping vs. crying it out), the effect of pregnancy on the family, dealing with pediatrician visits and vaccination controversy, dealing with toddlers, heading back to work, discipline methods and much more.

I recently became a stay at home mom, or a work at home mom who does some freelance writing, to Noah, born December 21, 2007. He is almost eight weeks old and I love him more than life itself. We live with my hardworking and devoted husband, Marc, four cats and a yappy little dog.