Costa News Spain Breaking News | English News in Spain.
After at least five babies were hospitalised due to potentially contaminated baby formula, the Spanish government has issued an urgent warning to parents.
After five infants were hospitalized with vomiting and other gastrointestinal problems, the cause was found to be milk contaminated with bacteria.
Three other babies also fell ill, but they did not need hospital treatment. All eight babies were discharged from hospital and are now on the mend.
The cases were diagnosed in December and are linked to infant formula under investigation for possible contamination by cereulide. This is a toxin that’s produced by bacteria called Bacillus cereus.
Information from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control is published in a bulletin. Spanish authorities have not made this issue public before.
Spain’s Ministry of Health described the cases of foodborne toxin as suspected. It noted that laboratory conformation can often be difficult because symptoms develop quickly before testing is completed.
The ECDC reports that all eight infants affected in Spain vomited shortly after consuming potentially contaminated baby formula.
The ECDC warns of the wide distribution of the recalled product across Europe and other countries.
This means exposure to contaminated batches is ‘moderate to high’ for infants who consumed them.
There aren’t just cases in Spain, either – reports of similar scenarios have occurred in other countries across the EU.
France, Belgium, and Denmark have all reported a number of cases where contaminated baby formula has led to hospitalisations. The UK had 36 such cases, whereas France only had 11, Belgium 5 and Denmark has an unknown amount.
A study in Belgium determined that there was a positive relationship between side effects of baby formula and consumption.
Children under the age of one year are at moderate risk, but newborns and babies younger than six months are most at risk due to dehydration and electrolyte balance.
Spain’s Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition AESAN says the majority of affected batches were withdrawn prior to reaching consumers, but parents are advised not to use recalled products.
Brands affected so far include:
Parents are encouraged to check the batch numbers of affected products on AESAN’s website, and to return them to retailers.
AESAN has been trying to reassure public that Spain’s system of food safety is effective and that many products affected never made it to the market.
Further precautionary withdrawals are possible in the weeks to come.
The health authorities say there is no reason for concern, but parents are advised to stop using the recalled products and consult a doctor if their infants experience persistent vomiting, lethargy or feeding problems.
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