Recalled toys contain chemical linked to date-rape drug

— -- About 4.2 million Chinese-made children's toys were recalled Wednesday after U.S. regulators learned a chemical on the toy beads turns into a powerful "date rape" drug when swallowed.

Two children in the USA went into comas after ingesting beads that were part of Aqua Dots craft sets. They have since recovered, Consumer Product Safety Commission spokesman Scott Wolfson said. Three children in Australia, which also recalled the toy, were hospitalized after swallowing the beads.

The toy, distributed by Toronto-based Spin Master, was sold in the USA in mass-merchandise stores from April through November of this year, CPSC said. Wal-Mart named Aqua Dots one of its 12 top toys this year, and it was the 2007 Toy of the Year in Australia.

The toy came with different accessories such as a drying fan, applicator pen, design templates for the beads and spray bottle. All versions are recalled. The product is labeled for ages 4 and up.

The beads can be arranged into designs. The chemical that allows them to fuse together when sprayed with water metabolizes in the body into the drug gamma hydroxybutyrate. GHB is known as a "date rape" drug because it can render users helpless.

Australian officials told Reuters that instead of the safe chemical 1,5-pentanediol, the potentially dangerous chemical 1,4-butanediol was used during manufacturing. When ingested, 1,4-butanediol becomes GHB. It can cause drowsiness, unconsciousness, seizures, coma and death.

In the USA, a 20-month-old child swallowed several dozen beads, became dizzy and vomited several times before slipping into a coma. A second child also vomited and slipped into a coma.

Michael Brown, a former CPSC general counsel, says it's unlikely that required CPSC testing would have caught the presence of the chemical. "Who would ever think about that in a toy?" says Brown, now a product safety lawyer.

Brown says the switch is the kind of problem that occurs when manufacturers are trying to meet deadlines and run out of materials or try to cut costs.