- TORONTO - A Toronto doctor
has sent a petition signed by dozens of health professionals calling on
the federal government to ban jelly cup candies. The petition says the
candies can cause children to choke.
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- The candies are made with a binding agent that makes
them hard to chew Dr. Warren Goldstein witnessed the death of a four-year-old
girl who choked on one of the candies in April 2000. He calls it one of
the most heartbreaking moments of his life.
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- Since then, Goldstein has been campaigning to get the
jelly candies off the market.
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- The petition is signed by surgeons, family doctors, emergency
specialists and child experts.
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- The candies are made with a binding agent that makes
them hard to chew. They are sold in several fruit flavors and found in
small sealed plastic cups that may contain a chunk of fruit. Each jelly
cup is about the size of a coffee creamer.
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- Goldstein attached a letter to Prime Minister Jean Chretien
imploring him as a father and grandfather to keep the "killer candies"
from the hands of Canadian children.
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- In the letter, Goldstein says the cries of the girl's
mother will haunt him forever.
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- Last summer, American retailers pulled the candies from
their shelves. Just last month, the U.S. government banned their importation.
Health Canada is reviewing the case.
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- The U.S. Federal Department of Agriculture has linked
the deaths of at least three deaths to the candies. At least a dozen other
deaths have been reported worldwide.
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- The Canadian Food Inspection Agency issued a health alert
about the jelly cups in August 2000. It was a repeat of a warning given
the previous year.
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- Goldstein says the candies are designed to be sucked
out of the cups. The sucking action is strong enough to pull the candy
straight into a person's throat.
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- Importers of the candy say it is safe to eat. They say
the packaging warns people to supervise when children or seniors are eating
them.
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- Written by CBC News Online staff http://cbc.ca/cgi-bin/view?/news/2001/11/14/Consumers/jellycup_011114
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