Aromatherapy spray linked to US deaths faces recall

Associated Press contributed to this report

NEW YORK – U.S. health officials may have solved the mystery of how four people in different states came down with a serious tropical disease, even though none had traveled internationally. The four people may have been infected by an aromatherapy spray imported from India. The recall is for bottles of Better Homes and Gardens Essential Oil Infused Aromatherapy Room Spray with Gemstones.

Two of them died. One was a child. The others were from Kansas, Minnesota and Texas.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday that its scientists found the same type of bacteria that causes the disease in an aromatherapy spray found in the Georgia patient’s home. The spray was made in India.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission website, tests conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) determined that a bottle of the room spray contained the rare and dangerous bacteria Burkholderia pseudomallei which causes melioidosis, a condition that is difficult to diagnose and can be fatal. CDC has been investigating a cluster of four confirmed cases of melioidosis including two deaths in the U.S.

Though the source of these four infections has not been confirmed by CDC, the bottle with the same type of bacteria was found in the home of one of the melioidosis decedents.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission and Walmart issued a recall Friday for 3,900 bottles of the spray.

The CPSC say the aromatherapy room spray was sold at about 55 Walmart stores nationwide and online at walmart.com from February 2021 through October 2021 for about $4 and has "Better Homes and Gardens Aromatherapy" on the label.

The aromatherapy was sold with a pump spray nozzle in the following scents and product numbers:

  • 84140411420 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Lavender & Chamomile
  • 84140411421 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Lemon and Mandarin
  • 84140411422 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Lavender
  • 84140411423 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Peppermint
  • 84140411424 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Lime & Eucalyptus
  • 84140411425 Better Homes and Gardens (BHG) Gem Room Spray Sandalwood and Vanilla