I have been aware of the china-made milk scare the first time CNN broke the story. The next day, TV Patrol World reported the same incident. In the beginning, I thought it was isolated in that country. Imagine my horror when a couple of days later, I learned that RP could also be affected as there are several companies importing milk from China.
I checked our food products one by one and a trip to the supermarket now involves checking the labels to make sure nothing is made in China. That’s exactly what we did on a trip to Crossing supermarket last Thursday. While there, I looked at several options for their snacks.In the end, I picked up a pack of Nissin choco wafers and Oreo cookies.
At around 3PM, Maia had a pack of Nissin choco wafer; she went to take a nap right after that. When she woke up at around 6PM she had dinner, with Ube ice cream for dessert. Then she started throwing up, every 20 minutes or so, until she started vomiting this frothy, yucky, icky, yellow-greenish discharge. At about 10PM, she started to look dehydrated so we rushed her to the ER, leaving Lilaa with the yaya who was understanding enough to stay when I explained that we had to bring her sister to the doctor.
The St. Luke’s Medical Center ER was a mad house, and a full mad house at that. Maia was admitted and immediately hooked up to an IV line. We had to wait in one of hubby’s department office rooms meanwhile waiting for an available room. We finally got one at around three in the morning. We were so tired and sleepy, we slept like babies for a few hours. I’m glad I did because looking back, it prepared me for something worse.
Early Friday morning, after hubby left to get more stuff from home, I checked my phone for messages. I was so shocked to get a SMS from my yaya relating that Lilaa’s been up the whole night throwing up also. I called but hubby, Lilaa and the yaya were at the door already. My heart was racing and I didn’t have to ask anymore questions. The yaya volunteered that she fed Lilaa the Nissin choco wafer right after we left so she can bribe her to sleep early.
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what the culprit was. Tracking the household’s food intake the past forty-eight hours, we realized that only Lilaa and Maia had the wafer, and they’re the only ones downed by whatever was in it. My next action is sending a sample of the Nissin choco wafer to BFAD for testing. I read the label and it does say it’s made in RP but of course, no information is given on where the raw ingredients like milk comes from.
We were discharged after lunch today. Despite it all, my girls were in high spirit most of the time. Except when Lilaa was being hooked up to an IV, she cried so hard and kept saying “no way, no way!”. My little girls grew up overnight having subjected to these torturous episodes.
Indeed it was a close call. We yet have to find out what really caused these, we hope we do so, soon.
