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Thousands of bottles of Benadryl have been recalled due to the risk of “child poisoning,” according to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission.
The agency announced the recall of Benadryl Liquid Elixir, 100 mL bottles — with X003VRIGUL on the label — on March 20, citing that the packaging risked “child poisoning.”
“The Benadryl contains diphenhydramine which must be in child-resistant packaging as required by the Poison Prevention Packaging Act,” the announcement said. “The packaging of the products is not child-resistant, posing a risk of poisoning if the contents are swallowed by young children.”
A company spokesperson for Kenvue, the parent company of Benadryl, told PEOPLE in a statement: “We take the quality, packaging, and safety of our products very seriously, and always recommend medication be kept out of the reach of children. We are investigating this matter as the recalled lot of Benadryl Liquid Elixir is not authorized for sale in the United States.”
The statement continues: “Benadryl Liquid Elixir 100 ml bottle is a product manufactured in Canada for Canadian consumers and meets Health Canada’s packaging regulations. It appears this product may have been diverted from Canada and inappropriately sold in the United States by an unauthorized third-party online seller. Consumers who have purchased this lot of product from Amazon should comply with the details of the recall, which can be found on the Consumer Product Safety Commission website.”
The statement concludes: “This recall does not impact any other Benadryl product sold in the United States or Canada. Benadryl is safe when taken as indicated on the product label.”
As the National Library of Medicine explains, diphenhydramine, the active ingredient in Benadryl, “is a first-generation antihistamine that is used in a variety of conditions to treat and prevent dystonias, insomnia, pruritis, urticaria, vertigo, and motion sickness.”
An overdose can cause “significant toxicity,” with symptoms that can include cardiac arrhythmias, rhabdomyolysis (a toxic breakdown of muscle tissue), delirium, hallucinations, blurry vision, retention of urine, and seizures.
Too much diphenhydramine can be fatal, as Mount Sinai points out it can cause “serious heart rhythm disturbances.” An overdose can also cause “complications such as pneumonia, muscle damage from lying on a hard surface for a long period of time, or brain damage from lack of oxygen may result in permanent disability.”
The National Library of Medicine cautions that “Parents should be educated on the safe storage of this agent to prevent accidental ingestion by children.”
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About 2,300 bottles of Benadryl that were purchased on Amazon are included in the recall, which notes that the problem isn’t with the product itself, but with the packaging. However, consumers are advised to dispose of the product regardless.
The bottles were sold for between $16 and $19 and refund is available from the distributor; The recall notes that “Consumers will be asked to submit their Amazon order number and a photo demonstrating disposal of the recalled Benadryl to recall@arsellsupport.com.”
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