Health Canada warns about bedbug products after 2 Alberta children die

Health Minister Rona Ambrose in the House of Commons on Jan. 28, 2013, in Ottawa. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

The federal government is warning Canadians of what it calls the extreme danger of using unregistered products to fight bedbugs.

The Health Canada warning comes after two children from northern Alberta died from a toxic insecticide thought to be aluminum phosphide brought back by the family from Pakistan.

Health Minister Rona Ambrose expressed her condolences to the family, who was attending the funeral of son Zia, 2 on Friday. His eight-month-old sister died Sunday.

Its a really tragic situation and this is a product that in terms of how its regulated, is not supposed to be used in homes ever, Ambrose said in Calgary.

Its a very dangerous pesticide and it needs to be used by people who are trained to use it.

Health Canada said aluminum phosphide is highly toxic to people and animals.

The department said it can only be sold to people with special training and is not approved for use on bedbugs.

It is not clear how the family managed to bring the pesticide into Canada.

Health Canada says people can legally import small amounts of chemical pest control products not registered in Canada for their personal use, but the rules are aimed at products such as insect repellent.

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Health Canada warns about bedbug products after 2 Alberta children die