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Made shock findings in popular children’s play

The Baby Born doll has been popular for over 20 years. The special thing about it is that it can drink, eat and swim. Now it is not advisable to let the doll swim with the child.

– It’s disgusting. That you play with things like that is really quite hair-raising, says mother Silje Kristin Borg-Vatne. The family has several Baby Born dolls, one of which has been inherited from mother to daughter Ane-Emilie (6).

SURPRISED: Mother Silje Kristin Borg-Vatne and daughter Ane-Emilie Vatne Gaup (6) were surprised when they saw mold inside the oldest dolls. Photo: Pernille V. Dvergedal / TV 2 helps you.

May make children ill

For what makes Baby Born special also provides good conditions for the growth of bacteria and fungi on the inside of the doll. The older it is, the more mold and bacteria you will probably find inside the doll.

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It can be dangerous. Last week the news came about two-year-old Baylor who became seriously ill from what grew inside his bath toy.

Chief physician at Oslo University Hospital, Tonje Reier Nilsen, is an expert on allergies and lung diseases in children. She believes the mold is more nasty than dangerous and is most concerned about the bacteria that grow in the dolls.

– Especially if the child swallows this water, then it can get stomach upset, diarrhea and vomiting. It can also get infections such as cataracts or ear infections, she says.

There are especially intestinal bacteria, which can get into the doll when the child bathes with it, Shrimp are worried about.

– I think I probably would not recommend having the doll in the bath water for the child, says the pediatrician.

This is how the test is carried out

INVESTIGATOR: Mycoteam's general manager Kolbjørn Mohn Jenssen and advisor Malin Siljedahl examine the dolls.

INVESTIGATOR: Mycoteam’s general manager Kolbjørn Mohn Jenssen and advisor Malin Siljedahl examine the dolls. Photo: TV 2 helps you.

TV 2 helps you have checked the inside of six Baby Born dolls from different families. Three are from the family of Silje Kristine Borg-Vatne. The age of the dolls ranges from four to 25 years.

In addition, the editors bought a brand new doll, which they bathed and fed for three months. After each time, they followed the cleaning process recommended in the instructions for use.

After bathing or feeding the doll, clean it by feeding it with soapy water, then clean water, then water with vinegar in and then clean water again. In addition, the doll must dry until it is to be used again. A time-consuming cleaning process that families with young children are unlikely to take time for.

All the dolls were examined in a laboratory at the company Mycoteam.

Also new doll has intestinal bacteria

NEW DOLL: Also in the brand new doll that was well cleaned after each bath and feeding, there were intestinal bacteria.

NEW DOLL: Also in the brand new doll that was well cleaned after each bath and feeding, there were intestinal bacteria. Photo: Pernille V. Dvergedal / TV 2 helps you.

The oldest dolls have mold and a lot of bacteria inside. When the dolls are opened, you can clearly see the mold that grows inside.

All but one of the dolls have a lot of bacteria growing inside. In three of the dolls there are also intestinal bacteria.

– It is as dirty as a bathroom drain on the inside. All types of bacteria grow on all but one, says general manager at Mycoteam, Kolbjørn Mohn Jenssen.

It is the four-year-old doll that has no bacteria inside. It has not been bathed or fed with the “doll food” that comes with Baby Born, but only given clean water to drink.

DISGUSTING: There was clear fouling inside the pipes inside the doll.  Here is the inside of one of the oldest dolls in over 20 years.

DISGUSTING: There was clear fouling inside the pipes inside the doll. Here is the inside of one of the oldest dolls in over 20 years. Photo: Pernille V. Dvergedal / TV 2 helps you.

– If you feed these dolls and bathe with them, you will get vegetation inside, says Jenssen.

BLACK MUSHROOMS: Inside the oldest dolls and the eight-year-old doll, Mycoteam found mushrooms.

BLACK MUSHROOMS: Inside the oldest dolls and the eight-year-old doll, Mycoteam found mushrooms. Photo: Pernille V. Dvergedal / TV 2 helps you.

The new doll, which has been cleaned after each bath, has a lot of bacteria inside.

– This doll here has a fairly rich yeast flora and a number of intestinal bacteria inside. Slightly more intestinal bacteria than the others, says Jenssen.

The bacteria come from the child it has bathed with.

However, no mold has been found, which may indicate that the cleaning process helps with mold, but not bacteria.

The manufacturer makes changes

German Zapf Creation AG is the company behind Baby Born. Wolfgang Hoffmann, CEO of Marketing and Product Development, says Baby Born is a safe toy:

– In general, it is known that toys, and especially those that are in contact with water, are exposed to pollution. Therefore, it is important to be very careful to follow our recommendations for the doll and clean and dry it properly according to the instructions. This will minimize the growth of mold, says Hoffmann.

He emphasizes that the older dolls over the age of 20 were not meant to be bathed with, but could be fed.

He acknowledges that all bath toys with holes in them are exposed to both fungi and bacteria, and that small children are exposed as they may swallow the water they bathe in. Therefore, the manufacturer changes the instructions for using the doll, henceforth they will advise against letting the doll bathe with the child.

– We completely agree with Tonje Reier-Nilsen. So if you wash, dry and respect this advice, then we believe that the doll is 100 percent safe, says Hoffmann.

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