A Gold Coast toddler remains in a serious condition in an induced coma in a Brisbane hospital five days after he inhaled a metallic dust used for decorating cakes, as experts scramble to understand the rare poisoning event.
Fourteen-month-old Dustin Wildman was “pottering around” while his mum, baker Katie Robinson, made a cake for a friend’s son’s birthday party on Friday, when he discovered a canister of metallic rose gold lustre dust, a product used to add a shimmering finish to baked goods.
“Before we knew it, he’d bitten the top off it and inhaled and ingested some of that powder,” Robinson told Nine News.
Robinson, who was in the studio with her partner, Chris Wildman, said the toddler started coughing and immediately became distressed.
“[He] became a bit more unresponsive and his eyes were rolling in his head … he couldn’t breathe properly,” she said.
“He was getting all floppy and his head was dropping, and we were trying to keep him upright.
“It was terrifying to watch.”
Paramedics rushed Dustin to Queensland Children’s Hospital in Brisbane, where doctors performed emergency surgery to clear his lungs, before placing him in an induced coma.
He remained in a coma on Wednesday, with a tube to support his breathing, but was gradually being encouraged to start breathing on his own.
“He’s really trying to get that going by himself, which is great,” Robinson said.
“His lungs [and stomach] were very inflamed … so we’re working on getting that inflammation down and expelling the copper that’s inside him.”
Doctors have warned the Gold Coast parents that there may be “some lasting damage on [Dustin’s] lungs”, but they are hopeful his condition will improve.
The metallic dust is similar to many non-toxic, edible decorating finishes, but it contains copper and zinc and is not meant for consumption.
The couple is sharing their story as a warning to other families and professionals who might have the product on hand.
“The packaging is quite vague, it doesn’t say anything about it not being edible or it being toxic,” she said.
“There are so many products out there that are similar that are edible, so most people that are using these products would assume that they are able to be ingested, and able to be used on cakes.
“That’s the message that I want to get out there: we need to be really careful about how many products … have this metallic, copper metal inside them that’s going to be harmful.”
The Queensland Poisons Information Centre was contacted for comment but had no information on warnings or poisoning incidents involving similar products to share.
A 2021 study by American researchers, who investigated heavy metal poisonings in children aged 1-11 years from lustre dust products, found further guidance for consumers and bakeries was needed to prevent unintended poisonings.
It found labelling indicating a product is non-toxic does not imply that it is safe for consumption. The researchers recommended more explicit labelling.
Robinson said she had been in touch with Creative Cake Decorating about the product that poisoned her son, with several stockists pulling it from shelves or destroying it.
A crowdfunding campaign set up to support the family by Rochelle Evard, a friend of Robinson’s, has raised more than $27,000.
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.