Tainted toothpaste seized in Connecticut

HARTFORD, Conn., July 10 (UPI) -- Connecticut inspectors seized 705 tubes of toothpaste tainted with anti-freeze made in China and South Africa.

The state Department of Consumer Protection began checking stores after learning some of the brands recalled last month by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration were still being sold, a New York Times correspondent reported from Hartford, Conn.

Inspectors said they seized 430 tubes of counterfeit Colgate toothpaste reportedly made in South Africa and 275 tubes of Chinese-made Dentakleen and the strawberry and blueberry flavors of Dentakleen Junior.

The paste was made using the anti-freeze component diethylene glycol, a sweet-tasting liquid that is less expensive than glycerin, which is used in legitimate products, the report said.

Ingesting diethylene glycol can cause liver and kidney damage, and consumers were advised by the FDA to return or discard any of the brands in the recall.