Walmart Recalls Aromatherapy Room Sprays Linked to Deaths
Better Homes & Gardens Essential Oil-Infused Aromatherapy Room Spray with Gemstones which comes in six different scents being recalled by Walmart.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is investigating four cases of a dangerous bacterial infection, two of which have resulted in death.
The product was sold in 55 Walmart stores and online from February through October 2021 for about $4.
The infection can cause fever, headache, joint pain, seizures, brain infection, and death. The CDC is investigating 4 cases in Kansas, Minnesota, Texas, and Georgia. One of the two fatalities was a child.
This aromatherapy product was sold in 5-ounce glass bottles with a pump-spray nozzle in the following scents and with these product numbers:
84140411420 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Lavender & Chamomile
84140411421 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Lemon and Mandarin
84140411422 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Lavender
84140411423 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Peppermint
84140411424 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Lime & Eucalyptus
84140411425 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Sandalwood and Vanilla
The CDC advises people who may have this product in their home to:
- Stop using this product immediately. Do not open the bottle. Do not throw away or dispose of the bottle in the regular trash.
- Double bag the bottle in clean, clear zip-top bags and place in a small cardboard box. Return the bagged and boxed product to a Walmart store.
- Wash sheets or linens that the product may have been sprayed on using normal laundry detergent and dry completely in a hot dryer; bleach can be used if desired.
- Wipe down counters and surfaces that might have the spray on them with undiluted Pine-Sol or similar disinfectant.
- Limit how much you handle the spray bottle and wash hands thoroughly after touching the bottle or linens. If you used gloves, wash your hands afterward.
- If you have used the product within the past 21 days and have a fever or other melioidosis symptoms, seek medical care and tell your doctor you were exposed to the spray. If you do not have symptoms but were exposed to the product in the last 7 days, your doctor may recommend that you get antibiotics to prevent infection. - CDC
Sources: United States Consumer Product Safety Commission, CDC (Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, and NPR.