Toddler 'looked dead' after eating recalled Kinder chocolate
A mum was left fearing the worst when her three-year-old son was rushed to hospital after falling violently ill from eating a Kinder chocolate egg believed to be contaminated.
Billy Way, from Barry, Wales, "looked dead" according to mum Kasey Cooke, who said doctors feared he could fall into a coma due to his dangerously low blood sugar levels.
The ordeal came after eating a pack of Kinder Surprise eggs, which have since been recalled by the company due to salmonella fears.
Over the past few weeks, thousands of Kinder items have been pulled from the shelves in Australia, the UK, France, Germany and Belgium with more than 100 cases of salmonella linked to a factory in Belgium where the products were made, UK newspaper The Mirror reports.
Billy joins dozens of young kids in the UK who've fallen ill after eating the chocolate, including a young girl who was 'lifeless' after digesting the recalled treat.
Ms Cooke said her son was "excited to eat the chocolate" after his brother Ajay, five, gave him one, but a few days later he started feeling sick.
"He couldn't keep anything down and couldn't even hold his weight on his feet. I had to put a nappy on him as he couldn't get up to use the toilet," Ms Cooke told The Mirror.
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Billy was admitted to Noah's Ark Children's Hospital in Cardiff, Wales, where he was on a drip for four days. At the time, she did not suspect the chocolate eggs were to blame.
Photos of the young boy shocked family members who said he 'looked dead,' Ms Cooke revealed.
"He looked like he was dying, his mouth was dry, his face was pale and his eyes were black and sunken. He didn't sit up for a week," she said.
It was only when friends told the "petrified" mum about the Kinder recall that she realised his symptoms matched salmonella poisoning.
Her suspicions were confirmed when doctors took a stool sample and found bacteria they thought was salmonella.
The first food alert for Kinder chocolates in the UK was issued on Saturday, April 2, according to The Sun, but a possible salmonella infection was first suspected at the end of March.
Meanwhile, Billy fell ill on April 1, his mum confirmed.
The terrifying ordeal has reportedly sworn the mum-of-two off Kinder chocolates for good and is hoping to receive compensation from the company Ferraro for her son who spent "almost a week in hospital."
Kinder chocolates recalled in Australia
Ferraro, who makes Kinder, issued the recall in Australia earlier this month, before adding several products to the contaminated list last weekend.
The Kinder products affected by the recall were sold across Australia at Coles, Woolworths, Target, Kmart, Big W, independent food retailers including IGA and petrol stations, and online.
Food Standards Australia and New Zealand warned Aussie consumers not to eat the affected products, warning "salmonella could cause illness if consumed".
The affected products were manufactured in Belgium, though other Kinder products, including Kinder Surprise 20g single and three-pack eggs in white, blue and pink varieties, that were made in Italy are not impacted by the recall.
In Australia, the affected Kinder products are:
Kinder Easter Basket 120g (6x20g): 19300698000619
Kinder Mini Eggs Hazelnut: 100g: 19300698020242; 270g; 9300698503618; 750g: 9300698503618
Kinder Surprise Maxi (Miraculous) 100g: 19300698018591
Kinder Surprise Maxi (Natoons) 100g: 19300698016528
Kinder Surprise Xmas Maxi (Disney Frozen 2021) 100g: 9300698502246
Kinder Surprise Xmas Maxi (2021) 100g: 9300698501935
Kinder Maxi Xmas Mix with Plush (2021) 133g: 9300698504004
Kinder Xmas Happy Moments Ballotin (2021) 190g: 9300698503960
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