GNC Brand Iron Supplements For Women Were Recalled, So Check Your Bottle

The average person has dozens of pill bottles and packages laying around their home. They can range from over-the-counter remedies and prescriptions to vitamins and supplements. While most don't give this any thought, it's time take a peek inside your medicine cabinet because you might have one that could cause serious consequences for a child. GNC brand iron supplements for women were recalled due to faulty child resistant packaging.

The company has recalled 756,000 units of pills because the foil blistered packaging is not child-safe, which is required by federal law, according to U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

The recall is for Women’s Iron Complete Dietary Supplement 60-count caplets and comes in a white box marked “Women’s Iron Complete." Because of the issue with the packaging, children may be able to easily access the potentially deadly pills.

While iron occurs naturally in foods, and most children's vitamins contain a small amount, too much can cause iron toxicity, which can result in bleeding, shock, acidosis, and death, according to the National Capital Poison Center (NCPC).

All medicines and supplements should be kept out of reach of small children. Toddlers can find a way to open many things they shouldn't if given enough time, according to the NCPC.

Iron toxicity usually starts with the ingestion of more than 20 mg/kg of body weight, according to WebMD. That means that just how serious the situation truly is depends on the child's weight, as well as, of course, how much iron they've actually ingested.

If a child ingests one of the pills, seek medical attention immediately. Your child may not show symptoms immediately, but if you think that they got into your iron supplements, it's better to head to the doctor that wait, according to WebMD.

The pills were sold between September 2000 through August 2018 at GNC stores nationwide and cost $10. GNC has over 4,800 retail locations across the country, according to CBS News.

The recalled item can be returned to GNC for a full refund, so if you find that you still have a bottle lying around, you should take it back to the store.

Luckily, no injuries or fatalities have been reported, according to CBS News.

There are a couple of ways to make sure children stay safe from potential pill dangers, according to WebMD:

• Keeping all forms of pills, liquids, and powder medicines out of reach from children.
• Never rely solely on child-proof packaging.
• Talk to your children about eating unknown food or pills and explain that it can make them sick. Since pills and supplements can look like candy, if they don't understand why they shouldn't eat it, they may not realize that there's any danger.

This is just the latest in dozens of drug, food, and other recalls to happen during 2018, according to Consumer Affairs. Some of the major recalls this year included romaine lettuce, dog food, beef, chicken, cauliflower, and more. It's been a rough year for consumers.

So, bottom line, what can you do to keep your children safe? Firstly, discard or return the GNC product in question immediately. And then go ahead and take precautions so that your kids can't get their hands on any type of medicine that may be harmful to them.