Concerned parents are freaking out over pictures that show rampant mold infestation in their toddlers’ sippy cups made by Tommee Tippee, a popular baby’s product manufacturer.
The pictures posted by mothers Penny Powell and Marie-Pier L’Hostie of the inside of the anti-leakage component of Tommee Tippee sippy cups have been shared over 150,000 times by concerned parents on Facebook.
Powell’s friend was anxious about why her infant son kept getting sick, so she cracked open the top part of the cups and found the interior covered in mold.
Mon ami Simon O’kanada se demandait pourquoi son fils était toujours malade. Il a donc brisé l’anti fuite de son verre à…
Posted by Marie-Pier S. L’Hostie on Thursday, 18 February 2016
Many parents were horrified at the pictures, and others joined in to tear down the reputation of Tommee Tippee.
“I have many kinds of sippies at my daycare-I threw out the Tommie Tipees after a couple of weeks of use. They were washed daily, sanitized in bleach weekly, and used for only water. These quickly showed signs of mold-they’re the only cup I’ve seen yet that can NOT be cleaned,” wrote one commenter on Facebook.
Tommee Tippee has defended the integrity of their products, stating that in tests where the proper instructions are followed, the cups do not accumulate mold.
“The results support that when used with recommended liquids (cold, light fluids including water and non-pulp juices) and cleaned in line with instructions, there are no problems,” a Tommee Tippee spokesperson said in a statement to Buzzfeed. “Difficulties have arisen though when liquids that are not recommended for use in the cups have been used, like thick formula milk, pulpy juice and warm liquids.”
The company also recommends that the cups not be left for a long period of time before being cleaned.
However, the company said that they’ve opened up a call line for concerned parents, and have set up a webpage on how to properly clean the sippy cups and valves.
