http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/recall-for-toy-that-turns-into-drug/2007/11/06/1194329225773.html

Recall ordered for toy that turns into drug

The award-winning craft toy Bindeez, created by Melbourne company Moose.



A POPULAR children's toy found to contain a chemical that the human body turns into the party drug "fantasy", or "GHB", has been banned in three states and is being recalled by its Melbourne creator.

With the Melbourne Cup holiday yesterday, the Brumby Government is yet to decide whether it will follow NSW, ACT, South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory in banning the award-winning craft toy called Bindeez.

Three children, two in NSW and one in Queensland, have been admitted to hospital in the past 10 days after ingesting the toy's beads.

The toy is produced by Melbourne company Moose and won this year's toy of the year award at the Melbourne Toy and Hobby Fair. Bindeez consists of colourful craft beads that are joined together to create designs. They are sprayed with water to fix them.

The company yesterday ordered a nationwide recall of the Chinese-made product, saying a chemical had been substituted without the company's knowledge. The toy contains beads that have been found to contain a chemical that the body metabolises into gamma-hydroxy butyrate (GHB), also known as "grievous bodily harm". It should instead contain a non-toxic glue.

Scientists in NSW discovered the chemical's link to GHB, which can have serious effects such as seizures and is potentially life-threatening.

NSW Minister for Fair Trading Linda Burney ordered that the toy be removed from all store shelves and recommended that parents take it away from children.

Ms Burney said an investigation of the toy would consider whether the use of the chemical was deliberate. The NSW Office of Fair Trading had notified its counterparts around Australia of its decision.

Moose's marketing manager, Christie Nicholas, said the voluntary product recall followed a small number of incidents worldwide in which children had swallowed beads and needed medical attention.

"These incidents did not result in any long-term effects," she said. "When used as intended and clearly instructed, the product is safe. However, if misused and swallowed, it may have adverse results and cause the child to become ill."

Ms Nicholas said that when the product was returned to the market an ingredient would be added to the beads to produce a foul taste.

A spokeswoman for Victorian Consumer Affairs Minister Tony Robinson said the minister would ask Consumer Affairs Victoria to review the product and have it removed if necessary.

WA's Consumer Protection Commissioner Patrick Walter said he had become aware of the problem with Bindeez early yesterday and imposed an immediate ban.

WA consumer protection officers were sent to remove the toy from shelves.

The mother of 10-year-old Charlotte Lehane, one of the NSW children who fell ill, told ABC Radio she was "beside herself" when her daughter began vomiting and convulsing and passed out.

It was reported that a 19-month-old boy was taken to hospital in Toowoomba, Queensland, after ingesting one of the toy's "magic beads".

The boy's grandfather told ABC Radio that the child fell unconscious after swallowing some of the beads.

11/7/2007 4:59:52 PM

so what's the chemical?

i want to synthesize some

11/7/2007 5:04:04 PM

made in China. no wonder.

11/7/2007 5:07:33 PM

lol that didnt even need to be stated honestly

i somehow read this thread title and saw "CHINA" in big red letters

11/7/2007 5:09:21 PM

AQUADOTS!!!!!

11/7/2007 5:17:35 PM

Quote :

""magic beads"."

can i plz 2 have sum?

p.s. the fudging chinese...


[Edited on November 7, 2007 at 5:20 PM. Reason : ]

11/7/2007 5:20:05 PM

you could probably sell the shit out of those

11/7/2007 5:37:43 PM

yo i just heard this was the date rape drug

where can i locate these?

11/7/2007 5:44:01 PM

GHB isnt the date rape drug

It's Rohypnol, aka Roofies

11/7/2007 5:45:32 PM

i'm suing cnn

11/7/2007 5:47:26 PM

Sooooo if your kid is a fucking retard and eats them he gets high. Awesome.

11/7/2007 6:00:35 PM

shit just give those children the darwin award. why the fuck would a parent give their child a toy with small parts like that if they are mentally capable enough to know not to eat the beads. I mean GHB is pretty benign considering that the chemical could be more toxic.

11/7/2007 6:17:22 PM

This sounds like something all college kids should try eating

11/7/2007 6:39:39 PM

Quote :

"GHB isnt the date rape drug It's Rohypnol, aka Roofies"

GHB is indeed used as a date rape drug.

It's extremely dangerous.

11/7/2007 6:41:11 PM

man every time i see a story like this i think of:

Quote :

"Fun Toy Banned Because Of Three Stupid Dead Kids WASHINGTON, DC–In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Wizco Toys of Montclair, NJ, recalled 245,000 Aqua Assault RoboFighters Monday after three dumb kids managed to kill themselves playing with the popular toy, ruining the fun for everybody else. "

http://www.theonion.com/content/node/28331

11/7/2007 7:06:12 PM

^^sure, but alcohol is used as a date rape drug

Roofies are "the" date rape drug

btw, for informational purposes only http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-Bindeez-ACTIVITY-PACK-1000-Bindeez-NEW_W0QQitemZ300169554695QQihZ020QQcategoryZ489QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD2VQQcmdZViewItem

11/7/2007 7:16:54 PM

GHB is the "other" date rape drug as that is what it is primarily known for. It can be easily given to someone without their knowledge. It's not like you can really slip alcohol into someones drink for the purpose of raping them

11/7/2007 7:32:32 PM

Quote :

"GHB is indeed used as a date rape drug. It's extremely dangerous."

it's not extremely dangerous, and there is no way in hell a person could unknowingly ingest GHB mixed into a drink without realizing it. It tastes soapy and salty, and the taste is damn near impossible to get out of your mouth afterwards.

11/7/2007 8:20:33 PM

Okay, fine, let's check what Poisoning and Drug Overdose has to say about it.

Quote :

"It readily crosses the blood-brain barrier, resulting in general anesthesia and respiratory depression. Death results from injury secondary to abrupt loss of consciousness, apnea, pulmonary edema, or pulmonary aspiration of gastric contents. Fatal potentiation of GHB's depressant effects has occurred with ethanol and other depressant drugs."

Lest you misinterpret the last line, alcohol is not a necessary component for fatality--it just increases the risk.

Quote :

"Response to low oral doses of GHB is unpredictable, with variability between patients and in the same patient. Narcolepsy studies with 30 mg/kg have reported effects including abrupt onset of sleep, enuresis, hallucinations, and myoclonic movements. Anesthetic studies reported unconsciousness with 50 mg/kg and deep coma with 60 mg/kg. Fasting, ethanol, and other depressants enhance the effects of GHB."

11/7/2007 8:45:56 PM

that toy looks boring as fuck.

11/7/2007 9:04:07 PM

http://www.bindeez.org.uk/

Quote :

"No glue or heat means that Bindeez are safe for kids and absolutely no adult supervision is required! Your kids are busy creating great art with the fascinating Bindeez and you are free to make some important phone calls, read a book or watch a daytime soap!"

and then you go back and see your child has vomited everywhere and is now passed out.

I thought it wouldn't be that fun, but this video makes it look sorta cool.

11/7/2007 11:25:27 PM

Yeah, I think even if they weren't laced with GHB-derivative adhesive your little bastard children would still end up swallowing them or something thinking they were Nerds.

It's a cool craft product, for sure, but I thought everybody had learned by now that producing children's toys in china just gets you sick/dead.

11/7/2007 11:28:47 PM

Quote :

"It tastes soapy and salty, and the taste is damn near impossible to get out of your mouth afterwards."

is this coming from personal experience? was he at least hot as fuck?

11/7/2007 11:42:09 PM

Quote :

"Lest you misinterpret the last line, alcohol is not a necessary component for fatality--it just increases the risk."

actually, the last line meant exactly what it said. alcohol in combination with GHB is what causes the drug to be fatal. You're misinterpreting it.

The other quote basically said that the only way people injure themselves on GHB is by passing out and falling into something.

11/8/2007 8:07:33 AM

No. Wrong.

It functions as a general anesthetic, which means people STOP BREATHING. That's what causes them to die. It's why people who come to the ED due to GHB overdose often have to be intubated to keep them alive.

The presence of alcohol just allows that to happen at an even lower dose.

11/8/2007 8:16:42 AM

I take it you've never seen anyone sleep off a GHB overdose then, have you? Their breathing slows down to the point that they only take a few breaths a minute, and then an hour later they spring back into consciousness and act like they are wired up on too many stimulants.

GHB is a depressant, not an anesthetic. It doesn't reduce the sensation of pain at all. Quit reading a bunch of drug counseling awareness sites to get your info on the drug.

11/8/2007 9:04:46 AM

My sources were emergency medicine and pharmacology textbooks.

GHB does indeed function as a general anesthetic.

Your anecdotal experience is not generalizable.

People who screw around with it are taking a big risk. If you want to take the risk yourself, you can choose to--but don't come on here and tell people it's completely safe.

11/8/2007 9:09:44 AM

haha once again, eleusis thinks he knows everything!

11/8/2007 9:38:49 AM

no, he really does know everything.

11/8/2007 9:51:42 AM

if your medical textbooks claim GHB to be an anesthetic, then they must be from the 1940's. They stopped using in in the US because it was ineffective at blocking the sensations of pain.

11/8/2007 10:45:58 AM

no, he really does know everything.

11/8/2007 10:50:15 AM

no, I just know a hell of a lot more than DaveOT, sober46and6, bobbydigital, and smath74.

11/8/2007 1:03:28 PM

Quote :

"GHB's dose/response curve is similar to that of alcohol : At higher doses, users fall unconscious and are temporarily unable to be awakened (coma). It may also dangerously depress breathing."

http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/ghb/ghb.shtml

Quote :

"the unpleasant and dangerous overdose effect of possibly causing temporarily unrousable sleep (coma) at doses just over those that some people enjoy ingesting"

Quote :

"A heavy dose of GHB (from 2.5 + grams) can increase feelings of disequilibrium in many people to point of feeling quite ill. Many people accidentally move from Medium Dose to Over Dose, only passing through Heavy Dose for a few minutes. One reason that GHB has gained notoriety as a Club Drug is that some people experience extremely positive feelings on Heavy Doses of GHB. Reports of euphoria, feeling music deeply, joyous dancing, and other very positive effects are common among afficianados. People who report these effects also describe how difficult finding one's personal dose range can be to achieve these effects. An extra quarter (.25) gram can be the difference between euphoria and vomiting."

Quote :

"The Overdose range for GHB can be as little as 2 grams, based on body weight and individual sensitivity. One major problem with GHB as an underground recreational substance is that it has a sharp dose-response curve, which can be difficult to manage with the various non-standard preparations available to the uninformed buyer. Another major problem is that uninformed users often mix GHB with alcohol, which drastically increases the chance of vomiting and unconsciousness. An overdose can consist of mild to extreme nausea and dizziness, and vomiting. It can also be characterized by a strong drowsy feeling followed by an temporarily unrouseable sleep (sometimes characterized as a type of coma) for 1-4 hours. Some Overdoses of GHB mix vomiting with unconsciousness which is an extremely dangerous combination for obvious reasons. When using GHB (or any substance), it is important to remember to let someone who is with you know what you're doing, so if you experience Overdose effects, they can react appropriately and let any health professionals who become involved know what substance was involved. "

http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/ghb/ghb_effects.shtml



[Edited on November 8, 2007 at 2:12 PM. Reason : .]

11/8/2007 2:10:33 PM

Quote :

"An overdose can consist of mild to extreme nausea and dizziness, and vomiting. It can also be characterized by a strong drowsy feeling followed by an temporarily unrouseable sleep (sometimes characterized as a type of coma) for 1-4 hours."

let's just make sure you people understand that an overdose doesn't mean you died. The dose response that causes you to go from sedated to passed out is very drastic. The dose response from comatose to dead is a completely different. GHB acts in a completely different way than alcohol works in the body, even though some of the effects are similar. Also, passing out into a deep comatose state from GHB is safe as long as you are in safe surroundings during that time. You're not going to stop breathing or never wake back up.

and once again, GHB does not function as a general anesthetic. it is used in anesthesiology to knock the person out by giving them several grams intravenously, but they have to use another anesthetic to block the perception of pain. GHB by itself will do little to nothing to block the sensation of physical pain. Even in a GHB comatose state, the body will respond normally to undergoing surgery through heart rate and blood pressure changes.

The only reason people in GHB comas end up in the hospital is because they are found by people that have no idea about the effects of GHB and freak out. They call paramedics and tell them they overdosed on something, and 2 hours later the person will snap wide awake wondering what in the fuck is going on. This is further complicated by dumbass paramedics that don't understand why breathing is so sedated and assume they are about to stop breathing, misinterpreting the situation as an opiate overdose.

Unlike tranquilizers and opiates, GHB can never sedate breathing to dangerously low levels that would cause permanent harm to the individual. The CNS system is still fully functional even at the highest doses.

For a drug that you claim to be so lethal and was easily available over the counter for almost 4 decades, how can you claim that it is so dangerous when the DEA only reports 45 known overdoses that involved GHB (along with no telling how many other drugs in their system)?

11/8/2007 4:24:04 PM

do those erowid folks do the drugs before they write about them? i'm not taking sides in this thread but theres something to be said for experience...now I don't need to try heroin to know its addictive and dangerous, I'll take somebody's word for that all day...but I'd also take a pothead's word about weed compared to someone who has never smoked and bases everything off of particular studies...just throwing the idea out there

11/8/2007 4:28:14 PM

^^ you need to read this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma-Hydroxybutyric_acid#Mode_of_action

11/8/2007 4:48:09 PM

why did you post a link for the mode of action?

11/8/2007 5:28:18 PM

also, why won't someone in here actually look up the LD50 of GHB? You might be incredibly shocked at what you find.

11/8/2007 5:53:50 PM

because you apparently don't understand the rebound effect:

Quote :

"the so-called "rebound" effect, experienced by individuals using GHB as a sleeping agent, where they awake suddenly after several hours of GHB-induced deep sleep. That is to say, that over time, the concentration of GHB in the system decreases below the threshold for significant GABAB receptor activation and activates predominantly the GHB receptor, leading to wakefulness."

11/8/2007 6:47:31 PM

This should end the discussion.

Med J Aust. 2004 Sep 20;181(6):310-3.

Quote :

"OBJECTIVE: To identify deaths in Australasia associated with overdose of gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) and its precursors (gamma-butyrolactone and 1,4-butanediol). DESIGN: A retrospective search of medical and scientific information sources, as well as popular newsprint, for the period January 2000-August 2003, with formal clinical, toxicological and forensic evaluation of retrieved data. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Death associated with forensic data implicating GHB or its analogues. RESULTS: Ten confirmed GHB-associated deaths were identified, with eight considered to be directly attributable to GHB. Only two of these eight cases were positive for ethanol toxicology.CONCLUSIONS: Our study supports the existing evidence that GHB overdose is associated with fatalities, and that fatal overdoses occur in the context of isolated use."

There are documented clinical cases of GHB by itself causing death via respiratory depression.

I'm not arguing this any further.

11/8/2007 7:17:15 PM

MDowned

11/8/2007 8:02:25 PM

6 deaths in 4 years, or roughly 5,000 times safer than aspirin. 10 times safer than ephedrine. what's your point? the article makes no mention of the doses they were consuming. You do realize that the LD50 is over a gram per kilogram of bodyweight, right? do you also realize that the recreational dose is around 20mg per kilogram? A conservative ratio of the LD/ED is still in the range of 50:1 You can eat an entire bottle of caffeine pills or acetominophen and die, but that doesn't make either drug inherantly dangerous.


^^^apparently you don't understand the rebound effect, or any of the words in that quote for that matter. Also, that quote oversimplifies the entire situation. the dopamine inhibiting properties of GHB also play a huge role in the wired feeling experienced by users coming out of the comatose state. Good job of demonstration how you know absolutely nothing about this topic other than what wikipedia has taught you though.

there are a bunch of fucking morons in this thread who will never be able to understand anything beyond "drugs are bad, so only smoke weed and drink to excess". You are helpless.

11/8/2007 8:22:06 PM

i'd say the only fucking moron in this thread is the person RABIDLY DEFENDING A DATE RAPE DRUG

11/8/2007 8:47:48 PM

GHB is horrifically dangerous

bad bad shit

11/8/2007 8:51:23 PM

there you go. resort to mislabeling the drug as a date rape drug because you got called the fuck out on your bullshit. It's no more of a date rape drug than alcohol is.

I've already dispelled the myth about it being a date rape drug. There is no way on earth a person could get past the taste of that retchid shit without knowing what they were drinking. Sure, a person might willfully take it on their own and drink too much and end up passed out around the wrong people, but that would make them incredibly stupid. It's easier to blame a drug for why things happen then blaming your own actions.

Shit like that is exactly why I called you a moron.

11/8/2007 8:53:40 PM

^^it makes you sleep incredibly well if you suffer from insomnia. It gives you the sedation and euphoria of being drunk without the hangover, excess calories, and dying liver. And to top it all off, it makes your growth hormone production skyrocket - making your skin healthier, your vision better, your muscles grow stronger, and shedding fat off your body.

11/8/2007 8:55:37 PM

eleusis is an expert on everything

11/8/2007 9:09:46 PM

Quote :

"It gives you the sedation and euphoria of being drunk without the hangover, excess calories, and dying liver. And to top it all off, it makes your growth hormone production skyrocket - making your skin healthier, your vision better, your muscles grow stronger, and shedding fat off your body."

ahahaha this guy has GOT to be trolling

11/8/2007 9:22:05 PM

The only person that might be mistaken for trolling is you. why do you think bodybuilders were buying GBL by the gallon during the last 3 decades? Why do you think it is still prescribed for narcolepsy and insomnia? Are you trying to deny the scientific fact that GHB rapidly boosts growth hormone output, or are you just scared to do so?

You put WAY too much faith in the propaganda that the media feeds you if you honestly believe the horror stories of GHB. It's no different than the scare tactics that were used when "Reefer Madness" came out. Before you go announcing yourself as a self-proclaimed expert because you read a wikipedia article, go out and do some actual research on the drug from what real medical studies are showing to be true.

11/9/2007 8:59:03 AM

Quote :

"Why do you think it is still prescribed for narcolepsy and insomnia?"

bullshit

11/9/2007 9:06:22 AM