Mother Finds Mold in Sophie the Giraffe Toy

Parents will be horrified to hear that mold has been found in a popular toddler chew toy, Cosmopolitan reports.

Pediatric dentist and mother, Dana Chianese recommends teething toys to parents every day, including Sophie the Giraffe. However about a month ago, Chianese discovered a musty smell coming from her son’s toy.

“I decided to cut into Sophie out of curiosity and discovered a science experiment living inside,” Chianese told Goodhousekeeping.com. “Smelly, ugly mold living in my infant’s favorite chew toy!”

Dana says she always cleans the toy according to the directions. “It still hurts my heart to know that for months I allowed my babies to chew on moldy toys,” she says. “I no longer buy any chew toys with a hole or recommend any to my patients.”

After Chianese shared her findings, other parents were posting online of their moldy Sophie the Giraffe chewing toy.

A doctor at New York Presbyterian/Weil Cornell Medical Center told Care.com that children usually are not harmed by exposure to mold in toys, unless they have an immune disorder.

“The only way to prevent mold inside plastic toys is to make sure they are cleaned and thoroughly dried,” says Carolyn Forte, the director of the Cleaning Lab.

Forte recommends cleaning the toy at least once a week and reminds parents to never let it sit in water or leave water trapped in it.

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This article originally appeared on Womanista.com