WASHINGTON - The government warned consumers on Friday to avoid using toothpaste made in China because it may contain a poisonous chemical used in antifreeze.

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Out of caution, the Food and Drug Administration said, people should throw away toothpaste with labeling that states it was made in China. FDA is concerned that these products may contain diethylene glycol.

The agency is not aware of any reports in the United States of poisoning from toothpaste, but it did find the antifreeze ingredient in a shipment at the U.S. border and at two retail stores: a Dollar Plus store in Miami and a Todo A Peso store in Puerto Rico.

Officials said they are primarily concerned about toothpaste sold at bargain retail outlets. The ingredient in question, called DEG, is used as a lower-cost sweetener and thickening agent. The highest concentration of the chemical found in toothpaste so far was between 3-4 percent.

"It does not belong in toothpaste even in small concentrations," said the FDA's Deborah M. Autor.

The FDA increased its scrutiny of toothpaste made in China because of reports of contamination in several countries, including Panama.

The agency is particularly concerned about chronic exposure to DEG in children and in people with kidney or liver disease.

Agency officials said they had no estimate of how many tubes of tainted toothpaste might have made it into the U.S.

"Our concern today is potentially about all toothpaste that comes in from China," Autor said. "Our estimate is that China makes up about $3.3 million of the $2 billion U.S. toothpaste market."

The agency also issued an import alert for all dental products containing DEG. The alert means that toothpaste from China will be stopped at the border, she said.

The alert states that DEG has been improperly used in a variety of sedatives, syrups and cough medicines worldwide. Most recently, a cough syrup containing DEG resulted in more than 40 deaths in Panama last September.

The alert says the agency found DEG in three products manufactured by Goldcredit International Trading in China. The products are Cooldent Fluoride, Cooldent Spearmint and Cooldent ICE. Analysis of the products revealed that they contained between 3 percent and 4 percent DEG.

The agency also found the chemical in one product manufactured by Suzhou City Jinmao Daily Chemical Co. in China. Analysis of that product, Shir Fresh Mint Fluoride Paste, found that it contained about 1 percent DEG.

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WHY IN H**** ARE WE STILL ALLOWING UNCHECKED THINGS INTO THIS COUNTRY FROM CHINA? I still think that the thing in the cat food is an antifreeze component, by what it does to the animals (and killed my cats). Did you hear this? They are warning about melamine in fish and small animal food - China put melamine in it, unapproved for food use, to help as a binding agent.

We need to stand up and be vocal about this - anything from China needs to be checked. If not as it comes in, then the companies have a responsibility to check it before it hits the store shelves.

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I totally agree. Government should ban everything coming from China until they can get their sh*t together and get the sh*t out of their products. Seriously, antifreeze in toothpaste. What else have we unknowingly ingested that hasn't been tested? They already killed countless pets, sold fish with antibiotics in their system now this in toothpaste. Does an innocent child have to die before government bans this crap from China?

I see no reason why we still trade with them at all. It all boils down to money, but it really ticks me off. If only we would be as self-sufficient as possible, that would take many of these worries out of the picture.

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It sounds like the U.S. needs to quit importing stuff from China since they have very low quality standards.

American used to be very self-sufficient before all this outsourcing nonsense began in recent years.

perfectly stated!!!!!!!!

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