Urgent warning to parents as common household product leaves daughter 'blinded in one eye'
An urgent warning has been issued to parents after a child was blinded in an incident involving a washing pod.
Luca de Groot, four, bit into gel the capsule—filled with concentrated detergent—while helping her mother, Jodi Lowe, with the laundry.
According to Jodi, Luca began screaming and inadvertently rubbed the product across her eyes before she could intervene.
Jodi bundled her daughter into the shower to try and rinse away the chemicals—but when Luca's screaming worsened, she rushed her to hospital.
Shocking photos show Luca's red, swollen eyes covered in painful blisters and scabs which broke out days after exposure to the detergent.
After 16 days in hospital, Luca was discharged home but her sight is yet to fully return in one eye.
Jodi, who lives in Perth, Western Australia, believes warnings on the packaging need to be improved in light of her daughter's severe injuries.
The washing capsule, sold as Omo in Australia but marketed under the name Persil in the UK, was branded as a '3 in 1 'capsule with 'Comfort Freshness'.
Luca de Groot, four, bit into gel the capsule—filled with concentrated detergent—while helping her mother, Jodi Lowe, with the laundry
According to Jodi, Luca began screaming and inadvertently rubbed the product across her eyes before she could intervene
The washing capsule, sold as Omo in Australia but marketed under the name Persil in the UK, was branded as a '3 in 1 'capsule with 'Comfort Freshness'
Jodi, 34, a sales manager, said: 'Luca was helping me with the laundry and I gave her the pod just to hold while I put the washing on.
'And by the time I'd turned around, she'd already bitten into it and it went into her eyes. They're quite solid so when you pop them, they spray.
'And kids being kids she rubbed her eyes, which meant it went across both eyes.
'She's never had the urge to bite before. It's very out of character for her. She helps me with the laundry a lot but doesn't normally play with them.
'They do look and smell quite nice. They're attractive to kids.
'I put her into the shower and looked at the back of the product and it said to 'seek medical advice' so I didn't think it was going to cause much of an issue.
'She was screaming and really upset.
'I noticed she wasn't calming down, she was still hysterical. I called [a medical phone advice service] and they told me to go to hospital.'
Shocking photos show Luca's red, swollen eyes covered in painful blisters and scabs which broke out days after exposure to the detergent
After 16 days in hospital, Luca was discharged home but her sight is yet to fully return in one eye
Jodi, 34, a sales manager, said: 'Luca was helping me with the laundry and I gave her the pod just to hold while I put the washing on'
After a 16-day hospitalisation, Luca was discharged but doctors believe she will have redness around her eyes for the next six to 12 months.
Jodi said: 'Her sight in her left eye isn't fully there yet but is coming back slowly. She has a slight vision impairment.
'It could've been a lot worse. It's been pretty traumatic. It's not easy seeing your daughter in so much pain with nothing you can do.'
Jodi believes the current warnings on the Persil and Omo packaging are 'not good enough', insisting that they should be changed.
Jodi said: 'I know [Persil] say keep them away from the kids but on the packet it doesn't say anything about going to a hospital. It just says 'seek medical advice'.
'It needs to be more. It's not good enough how it is.
'I didn't realise the extent of injuries they could cause. You wouldn't think direct contact could cause pretty excessive burns, three surgeries and 16 days in hospital.
'There needs to be more awareness on their packaging.'
In October, McFly star Harry Judd's three-year-old son Lockie was rushed to hospital after a similar incident
The 38-year-old pop star's wife Izzy took to Instagram to detail the 'traumatic' few days the family had suffered and warn others
A Unilever spokesman said: 'Consumer safety is of paramount importance to Unilever. Any incident with children involving laundry capsules is one too many.
'Our liquid detergent capsules are not intended for use by children, and packaging is fitted with child safety closures and warnings on the front and back of pack.
'We have spoken to the mother about her child's incident and will conduct a review of the warnings and safety advice on our laundry capsule range in Australia.'
It's not the first time children have been injured by washing pods and tablets.
In October, McFly star Harry Judd's three-year-old son Lockie was rushed to hospital after a similar incident.
The 38-year-old's wife Izzy took to Instagram to detail the 'traumatic' few days the family had suffered and warn others.
Alongside a black and white snap holding her youngest child's hand, the author, 40, revealed her son was rushed to A&E after he got hold of a washing pod and it burst, squirting the contents into his eye.
He had 22 litres of fluid flushed into his eyes over several hours before the pH levels came down to a normal level.
Izzy Judd, 40, revealed her son was rushed to A&E after he got hold of a washing pod and it burst, squirting the contents into his eye
Izzy said at the time: 'It's been a traumatic few days… the reason I'm sharing this is because I don't want another family to experience this and although we all get told the risks of cleaning products at home, reminders are always important.
'So please, please put cleaning products high up and completely out of reach- this has been my scariest moment as a mum, I'm so sorry for others who have experienced these kind of awful accidents too.'
There have been numerous incidents reported of children mistaking washing pod for 'candy', and attempting to eat them, suffering poisoning, burns and sight loss.
Bizarrely, in 2018 the makers of US detergent brand tide was forced to issue a warning in light of the social media-driven 'Tide pod Challenge', which encouraged young people to upload videos of themselves biting into Tide washing pods.
