# Aromatherapy spray from Walmart kills people **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 23, 2021, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042 "2021-10-23T03:32:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/1 "2021-10-23T03:32:53Z")
This sounds like an Onion article headline but it’s real. > **[Walmart recalls aromatherapy room spray after 2 deaths, 4 illnesses reported...](https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/shopping/2021/10/22/walmart-recall-aromatherapy-spray-bacteria-melioidosis/6137979001/)** > > Walmart is recalling Better Homes and Gardens aromatherapy room spray because they may contain a rare and dangerous bacteria. > **[Walmart Recalls Better Homes and Gardens Essential Oil Infused Aromatherapy...](https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2022/Walmart-Recalls-Better-Homes-and-Gardens-Essential-Oil-Infused-Aromatherapy-Room-Spray-with-Gemstones-Due-to-Rare-and-Dangerous-Bacteria-Bacteria-Identified-in-this-Outbreak-Linked-to-Two-Deaths)** > > Return product to Walmart for destruction and receive a full refund and $20 Walmart Gift Card. > > Consistent with CDC recommendations, consumers should immediately stop using the recalled aromatherapy room spray, double bag the bottle in clean, clear... Some aromatherapy branded by Better Homes and Gardens and made in India had some rare bacteria in it. Two were killed and two more people made seriously ill. Not something you’d expect to happen. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/2 "2021-10-23T04:10:33Z")
Quick! Announce it being the next sure-fire Covid-19 cure! ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/3 "2021-10-23T11:07:30Z")
This made me laugh way more than it should have. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/4 "2021-10-23T12:28:10Z")
But of course we can’t even think of regulating this stuff, because Reasons. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/5 "2021-10-23T13:21:52Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Better Homes and Gardens Better than _what_? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/6 "2021-10-23T14:02:31Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > > [@Atamasama](#): > > > > Better Homes and Gardens > > Better than _what_? - Lesser Homes And Gardens. Duh. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/7 "2021-10-23T14:05:09Z")
Better You Than Me. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/8 "2021-10-23T14:18:11Z")
Comedy be damned, I’m once again the straight man GOAT! ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/9 "2021-10-23T14:33:20Z")
This isn’t the first time an aromatherapy product has turned out to be hazardous due to bacterial contamination. A hospital intensive care unit outbreak of drug-resistant Pseudomonas was traced to a shared aromatherapy bottle. > **[Nosocomial outbreak of extensively drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa...](https://www.ajicjournal.org/article/S0196-6553(16)31007-0/fulltext)** > > Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a major nosocomial pathogen associated with a broad spectrum > of human infections.1 P aeruginosa can be found ubiquitously and may persist in moist > environments.2 Skin, oropharyngeal, and fecal carriage is well known, and... Even uncontaminated aromatherapy oils can pose a risk of allergic reactions, and severe toxicity if ingested as some sellers recommend. A lot of this stuff is inadequately tested. “Benefits” need to be weighed against potential for harm. > **[aromascich07.pdf](https://www.pharmpress.com/files/docs/aromascich07.pdf)** > > 172.85 KB When/if I ever wind up in a hospital with a serious condition, I want purveyors of aromatherapy, “healing touch” and similar quackery kept a mile away from me. ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/10 "2021-10-23T14:42:07Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Quick! Announce it being the next sure-fire Covid-19 cure! Where’s the damn LIKE button? Congratulations, @Senegoid. I award you one Internet, with a bow on top. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/11 "2021-10-23T16:05:40Z")
Make sure you spritz that bow with some aromatherapy oils, for maximum benefit. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/12 "2021-10-23T18:31:51Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Customers will also receive a $20 Walmart Gift Card upon return. And if they had died, a $40 gift card. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/13 "2021-10-23T18:32:39Z")
Another article: > **[Deadly infection linked to contaminated room spray sold at Walmart](https://www.statnews.com/2021/10/22/melioidosis-outbreak-georgia-walmart/)** > > Four cases of a serious, sometimes fatal infection that have bedeviled public health investigators for months appear to have been linked to a room spray sold at Walmart. Think a bit about how surprising it was even noticed in the first place and the amount of detective work it took to find the cause (consider the large number of places and products you have been near in the last few weeks). ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2021, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aromatherapy-spray-from-walmart-kills-people/953042/14 "2021-10-23T18:41:38Z")
Third prize, a $60 gift card.