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Are Your Kids Drinking Mold? Tommee Tippee Recall Says Stop Using Sippy Cups Immediately [Video]

By Noelle Nicholas
Published on: 14:12 PST, May 31, 2016

Apparently, the Tommee Tippee brand sippy cups have been recalled due to problems with mold. Really? I use these cups! The insulated cup is my favorite choice for storing pureed foods for my little boy, who has special needs. I don’t usually freak out over a recall, even if I happen to use the item, but the sippy cup recall has me a bit dazed, and wondering if my son’s recent issues could have anything to do with the sippy cup.

CNN reported in February that some parents had become aware of black mold growing inside their child’s Tommee Tippee sippy cup spill-proof valve, although the cups were consistently washed either with soapy water or in a dishwasher. Seeing the issue on Facebook, a mom from Washington pried open the valve on her 16-month-old son’s sippy cup only to find that it did, indeed, contain mold.

“We didn’t put two and two together of the sippy cups and his health until recently. He’s always had a stuffy nose after using them and just about a week or so ago he had an upper respiratory infection.”

I have been using the Tommee Tippee Sippee cups for my little boy for at least a year. He has cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and gastrointestinal issues, among other things. He has been hospitalized three times within the past three months for infections. Twice he suffered respiratory infections, and once a gastrointestinal infection.

Could these have been caused by the Tommee Tippee sippy cups? I don’t know, but many parents claim their children have become sick after using the sippy cups.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, mold has been linked to respiratory issues such as throat irritation, nasal stuffiness, coughing, wheezing, and much more.

“In 2004 the Institute of Medicine (IOM) found there was sufficient evidence to link indoor exposure to mold with upper respiratory tract symptoms, cough, and wheeze in otherwise healthy people; with asthma symptoms in people with asthma; and with hypersensitivity pneumonitis in individuals susceptible to that immune-mediated condition. The IOM also found limited or suggestive evidence linking indoor mold exposure and respiratory illness in otherwise healthy children.”

Tommee Tippee did not recall the sippy cups right away when the mold issue was found, but did offer to send parents a clear spill-proof piece so they could be sure it was clean. Now, however, the recall states that consumers should stop using the Tommee Tippee Sippee cups with the one-piece valve immediately.

Having just learned of this mold issue, as well as the recall today, I am eager to check my little boy’s sippy cups. While I hope I find no mold, the sheer fact that we’ve used these for so long does not give me much hope that they will be clean.

According to the Tommee Tippee recall, the cups with the white one-piece spill-proof valve are no longer safe to use, even if they appear to be clean. The mold grows in the center of the valve and cannot be seen unless it is cut or pried open. The cups in the recall were sold between December 2014 and March 2016.

If you are affected by this recall, follow this link to an online form where you will enter your information. The recall company will email you a tracking number as well as a shipping label, so you do not have to pay the shipping costs. Once this has been received, place the lid with white valve attached into a package and ship to Tommee Tippee. You will receive your free sippy cup 7-10 days after the company receives your package.

While the sippy cup recall is not likely to pose life-threatening illness risks, respiratory and gastrointestinal infections are possible, and complications can occur. Do not continue to use these cups.

[Image via Shutterstock]

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