Reports have been surfacing about a mother who got panicked when her 9-month-old daughter recently started crying, vomiting and refusing her bottle.
“She was a completely different baby," Madeline Roque told WCNC-TV, in Charlotte, North Carolina. "She was throwing up throughout the day (and) passing a lot of gas ... I just knew something was wrong.”
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At some point, Roque noticed her baby formula looked a little different, in color and texture. She let a bottle stand and noticed the liquid separate -- which isn’t supposed to happen with infant formula. That’s when she realized it didn't even look like formula. The substance appeared to be flour, according to the news article.
Police in North Carolina are now investigating several cases of people reportedly buying baby formula, replacing it with flour and returning the product for cash, WCNC-TV said in its report last week.
In a few cases, those tampered formulas reportedly made it back on store shelves -- and parents didn’t realize the situation until their kids got sick, according to the TV station.
Walmart, which is where the formula was reportedly purchased, told WCNC that store policy is not to put any returned products back on the shelves, but officials confirmed to the NBC affiliate that they're investigating the incident in question.
If you’re a parent who buys infant formula, you should make sure the container is sealed properly and undamaged. Powdered formula mixes with water easily, so separation is an indication that something else might be involved.
Newsweek reported on the situation as well.
Although there’s no reason to believe this issue is more widespread, it’s always something to keep in the back of your mind if you’re a caretaker of a young child.
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