Peanut Butter Larabar Recall Hits Home
January 22, 2009 by eve
Filed under Family, Health, Kids, Product Reviews
Peanut Butter Recall
Micah and I were hit with mysterious flu like symptoms last week that lasted only half a day or so. I tucked him into my bed with me and put a towel over the blanket which proved to be of great Mommy foresight three hours and 4 towels later. I also brought my thermos filled with ice-water to bed and sipped ever so slightly at it throughout the night to prevent dehydration since I'm still nursing. My gracious husband took the next day off work and cleaned the house, so overall I can say that I benefited from the rest and help. I kept wondering if it could've been something we ate. Then today I got a call from our local grocery store. An automated message alerted me that I should not consume the Peanut Butter Larabars that I bought there recently. Well, a week late and $1.29 short, but I was grateful for the call none the less. I didn't realize that signing up for the local grocery store "club card" would benefit my family in this way, but I am glad to know that I will receive product recall notices on the items that I buy! That's great. "Peanut butter produced by Peanut Corporation of America (PCA) has been implicated in an outbreak of salmonella." hit the headlines today, affirming my ordeal once more. Specific recall information and natural salmonella treatment suggestions below:Credit: Rocky Mountain Laboratories,NIAID,NIH Color-enhanced scanning electron micrograph showing Salmonella typhimurium (red) invading cultured human cells.
Credit: Rocky Mountain Laboratories,NIAID,NIH Color-enhanced scanning electron micrograph showing Salmonella typhimurium (red) invading cultured human cells.
The specific products in this recall include:
Larabar peanut butter cookie
LÄRABAR Peanut Butter Cookie Individual Bar / UPC code number
Individual Bar / 54818-00014-7
Caddy (16-bar sleeve) / 54818-00064-2
6-bar pack / 93759-00298-8
6-bar, 6-pack case / 93759-00299-5
UPC Case Code / 54818-00085-7
JamFrakas Peanut Butter Blisscrisp snack bars / UPC code number
Individual bar / 93759-00212-4
Caddy (18-bar sleeve) / 93759-00213-1
UPC Case Code / 93759-00214-8
Salmonella bacteria is found wherever animals live. Recently we've seen the rise of vegetable crop contamination due to runoff of unprocessed waste from factory farms. Tomatoes, cantalopes, spinach, green onions and now peanuts have all been in the media in to past decade or so for serious salmonella outbreaks.
"During slaughtering and processing, salmonella may contaminate animal carcasses. According to U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates, nearly 40 percent of the American poultry supply, 12 percent of the pork and 5 percent of the beef are contaminated with salmonella.
Because fruits and vegetables have now been identified as a source of salmonella, it is important that these food items be thoroughly washed in running water before they are eaten.
Wash utensils and wooden cutting boards thoroughly with hot, soapy water. Salmonella may lie dormant for a year or more and then "wake up" when food is present. They also may live in the cut marks on a wooden cutting board. Use an acrylic board that can go in the dishwasher. Rub down or spray wooden boards with a solution of one ounce bleach to one gallon water and allow to air dry. "
Quoted from: Healthbeat
Natural Salmonella Treatment (found at Health A-Z)
A number of alternative treatments have been recommended for food poisoning. One very effective treatment that is stongly recommended is supplementation with Lactobacillus acidophilus, L. bulgaricus, and/or Bifidobacterium to restore essential bacteria in the digestive tract. These preparations are available as powders, tablets, or capsules from health food stores; soy yogurt with live L. acidophilus cultures can also be eaten. Fasting or a liquid-only diet is often used for food poisoning. Homeopathic treatment can work very effectively in the treatment of Salmonella food poisoning. Some examples of remedies commonly used are Chamomilla, Nux vomica, Ipecac, and Colchicum. Charcoal tablets can help absorb toxins and remove them from the digestive tract through bowel elimination.
Personally, I have used charcoal tablets for food poisoning relief in the past and have had sucess. Bentonite clay can also be used in the same way. Follow dosage instructions on the package.
If any of you have eaten the Peanut Butter Cookie Larabar and are pulling an all-nighter with your small children, you have my sympothies and encouragement that tomorrow will bring wellness again. Until then, keep plenty of towels on hand and get some rest.
The lesson for me is has been the confimation that whole fruits and vegetables properly washed have the highest level of nutrients and lowest level of poisoning risk of any food we can eat!
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A child feels loved when he notices he is more important than things or schedules. 
I ate a Peanut Butter Cookie Larabar on Thursday afternoon! What is the incubation period for this illness?
For me it was less than 24 hrs, but I read that it could be up to 48 hours. To ease your concerns I’ll let you know that my husband and toddler both ate them and didn’t get sick. Pay attention to how you feel today, my first symptoms were the unmistakable “I ate something bad” feeling and extreme nausia within an hour afterward. I must insert disclaimer here that my advice should not replace the advice of a healthcare professional. My understanding and experience though has been that the stronger your immune system, the shorter and easier the duration of infection. Elderly persons and non-breastfed infants are at the highest risk. For future reference you can also read my post about natural food poisoning treatments. If you have some probiotics (yogurt, kombucha) on hand you can take those now to help insure balanced intestinal flora. You’re probably okay, but of course if you get really sick; call your doctor for reassurance.
Eve,
I’m sorry to hear that you got sick. The worst thing about these peanut butter recalls is that peanut butter products tend to have VERY long shelf lives. Therefore, people are going to continue getting sick from these products for years to come.
If you want to stay up to date on recalls you can subscribe to our feed at http://www.usrecallnews.com . You can choose just the food recalls, consumer products, auto recalls, etc… and we have widgets for each one too.
Here’s another tip: Stay AWAY from Simplicity Cribs. That company is disgusting. They’ve been warned again and again by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) but refuse to cooperate. They should all be put in jail for knowingly murdering infants!
Thanks for the info, I did subscribe to the US Recall News mailing list! And thanks for the providing important information that keeps children and babies safe! I went to your site and read about the Simplicity Crib Recalls, it was hard to read about all those babies being fatally harmed by their cribs. Neither of my boys have ever slept a night in a crib. They both co-slept with me from birth (I always thought their Mama’s arms was the safest place for them in the whole of the world.) I’m inspired by that information to write a post on co-sleeping. Of course it will have to wait until tomorrow as tonight it’s late and I just want to go snuggle up with my bubs. Honestly, my heart goes out to the parents of those affected by those terribly unsafe products. Thanks again for being the voice of informative and responsible media.