FDA orders recall of contaminated mouthwash

MANILA, Philippines - The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has ordered the recall of a mouthwash from the local market after detecting possible microbial contamination of the product.

FDA director Suzette Lazo said Procter & Gamble Distributing Philippines (P&G) voluntarily removed its Oral-B Tooth and Gum Care Alcohol-Free Mouth Rinse from the market shelves.

Lazo said P&G recalled the product, manufactured in Columbia, shortly after the FDA issued an order for the company to voluntarily withdraw the product from the market.

“The voluntary recall is a precautionary step after detecting out-of-specification microbial levels in some products produced at the said manufacturing site in Columbia,” Lazo said.

Although they ordered the recall of the product, Lazo stressed there was no safety risk involved in using the product.

However, in a separate statement, P&G admitted that people with “severely weakened immune systems, such as those with cystic fibrosis, may be more susceptible to adverse health effects” from using the mouthwash.

P&G said consumers who have purchased the products with Notification No. NN-11-2333 are advised not to use them and instead immediately call the Oral-B Customer Service.