ABUJA, Nigeria — The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has issued an pressing recall for a batch of Benylin Paediatric cough syrup after discovering dangerously excessive ranges of diethylene glycol, a poisonous chemical linked to a number of baby fatalities in Cameroon and The Gambia. This batch was manufactured in South Africa in May 2021, with an expiration date of April 2024, and is recognized by its potential to trigger extreme well being dangers.
Diethylene glycol, recognized for its use in industrial purposes resembling antifreeze and as a solvent, has been detected at ranges categorised as having “an unacceptable high level” of toxicity. According to NAFDAC, consumption of this substance can result in extreme poisonous results together with belly ache, vomiting, diarrhea, incapability to urinate, complications, altered psychological states, and acute kidney harm, which could be deadly.
This recall notably issues Johnson & Johnson’s youngsters’s cough syrup. Although Johnson & Johnson and Kenvue, the present proprietor of the Benylin model submit its spinoff from Johnson & Johnson final 12 months, have but to answer NAFDAC’s findings, the implications of this contamination are extreme. The company highlighted that laboratory assessments confirmed the substance prompted “acute oral toxicity in laboratory animals,” underscoring the potential hazard to human well being, particularly in youngsters aged two to 12 years—the first customers of the product marketed for treating coughs, congestion, fever, and allergic reactions.
The Nigerian well being authorities are taking strong measures to mitigate this well being disaster by instructing mother and father to instantly cease utilizing the syrup if it matches the recalled batch. Healthcare suppliers and pharmacies have been directed to stop the sale of the implicated batch and return any inventory to regulatory our bodies for secure disposal.
This incident has spotlighted the vital want for stringent high quality management and regulatory oversight within the pharmaceutical trade. NAFDAC is actively coordinating with worldwide well being businesses to stop additional import and distribution of the contaminated medicine.
Parents and guardians in Nigeria are urged to examine the expiration date and batch info on youngsters’s cough syrup packaging and to hunt various secure therapies for respiratory and allergic signs in youngsters. This recall reaffirms the significance of vigilant security requirements and immediate motion in safeguarding public well being, notably for weak populations like youngsters.
https://www.africanexponent.com/nigeria-issues-recall-for-childrens-cough-syrup-due-to-high-toxicity-levels/
