New kid-resistant lid for Tide Pods planned

DALLAS -- The maker of Tide Pods will create a new double-latch lid to deter children from accessing and eating the brightly colored detergent packets, the company said Friday.

Procter & Gamble spokesman Paul Fox said the Cincinnati-based company plans to create a new lid on tubs of Tide Pods "in the next couple of weeks."

Doctors say children sometimes swallow Tide Pods and similar laundry products, packets about 1 inch big that are meant to be dropped into a washing machine in place of liquid or powder detergent. Nearly 250 cases nationally have been reported to poison control centers this year. No deaths have been reported.

Almost all of the cases so far have been reported since March, when several companies began to market the packets.

Some children might be confusing the tubs of colorfully swirled detergent packets for bowls of candy, experts say. Dr. Michael Buehler of the Carolinas Poison Center said Tide's tougher lid could make a difference. "Yes, it would be good, but I don't know enough," Buehler said. "It's too early to tell."

Spokespersons for other detergent-makers did not immediately say if they planned changes. -- AP