Tainted Peanut Butter Hazardous to Children

With millions of jars of Great Value and Peter Pan peanut butter subjected to salmonella recall, doctors and medical professionals are issuing warning to parents that the recall of peanut butter can affect children too. Salmonella is affecting both children and adults after its consumption. Eating Peter Pan peanut butter exposes children to a specific set of risks.

As children’s immunity system develops with age, the younger children are at an increased risk of catching salmonella by consuming contaminated peanut butter. Nearly, billion pounds of peanut butter are sold in the United States every year. The peanut jelly and butter forms a staple food for American school children, therefore children exposed to peanut butter gets affected easily to that of adults.

Signs and Symptoms of Salmonella

Salmonella occurs with the symptoms similar to that of food poisoning. These symptoms include abdominal cramping, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting and fever that occur between 18 to 72 hours of consuming infected peanut butter. If your child experiences any of these symptoms continuously then make sure to give them adequate fluids, since dehydration commonly occurs with salmonella. If symptoms are persistent or turn violent then immediately consult a doctor. Course of antibiotics or hospitalizations may be needed to cure salmonella, commonly this disease lasts for five to seven days. If label of your Great Value or Peter Pan peanut butter has the serial no. 2111 on it then it belongs to the contaminated batch. Make sure to keep the lid and discard the peanut butter. When you visit your medical health care professional or pediatrician, ensure that you inform him about the consumption of tainted peanut butter so that he can provide your child adequate treatment.

Although, children in particular are vulnerable to food – borne ailments like salmonella, other people are also at the risk of developing it if in case they have consumed Great Value peanut butter or Peter Pan peanut butter. These include those who are already ill from another viral infection or bacteria, immune system compromised individuals like those who have undergone chemotherapy or HIV patients and elderly people, whose immunity system becomes weak with age.

Legal Advice

If your child suffered from salmonella illness after consuming infected Peter Pan peanut butter, you can opt for legal recourse. You can seek the advice of an experienced unsafe products attorney who will help you in filing a lawsuit against the company so that you may get some monetary compensation for medical expenses and other costs associated with it.