Workers at a New Hampshire daycare allegedly added melatonin to children’s lunches, Manchester police say.
The owner of the establishment, Sally Dreckmann, 52, and her employees – Traci Innie, 51, Kaitlin Filardo, 23, and Jessica Foster, 23 – have been charged with ten counts of endangering the welfare of a child after surrendering to the authorities.
Police determined that the children’s food was being sprayed with melatonin without their parents’ knowledge or consent, possibly to make them drowsy and make them easier to treat.
Too much melatonin can cause vomiting, diarrhea, and even seizures, especially in young children with low tolerance.
“This is an over-the-counter medication that can be given as a sleep aid, but for it to be given to children without parental knowledge or consent is very concerning,” said Heather Hamel, spokesperson for the Manchester Police Department.
Sally Dreckmann, 52, was the owner of the home daycare (pictured left). Traci Innie, 51, worked alongside her (pictured right)
Kaitlin Filardo, 23, (left) and Jessica Foster, 23, (right), were also employees at the daycare. The four individuals have been charged with 10 counts of endangering the welfare of a child.
The police investigation began in November 2023 after receiving a report of unsafe practices at the daycare at 316 Amory Street in Manchester, New Hampshire.
“It looked like it was a powdery substance, maybe pills that were crumbled.” “I don’t know exactly, but they described it as if it was sprinkled on the food that was served to the children at lunch,” Mrs. Hamel said.
No children who ingested melatonin at daycare became ill, police said.
A woman inside the Amory Street home said 7News through a closed door that she had “no comment.”
She referred questions to her attorney, but when 7News contacted the attorney, she said the woman was not her client.
“If it were my son, I would be very upset,” said Gary Boucher, who lives near the daycare home. Boston 25 News.
“Obviously they’re doing it to knock out kids, but that’s something that shouldn’t be done at any time.”
The police investigation began in November 2023 after receiving a report of unsafe practices at the daycare at 316 Amory Street in Manchester, New Hampshire.
Melatonin in children can cause agitation, headaches, drowsiness, and more frequent bedwetting.
It comes as a CDC report released in March warned against children taking melatonin sleep gummies.
About 11,000 children were seen in emergency rooms between 2019 and 2022 after ingesting melatonin without supervision, the agency found, and the gummies were involved in nearly 5,000 of the cases.
Melatonin in children can cause agitation, headaches, drowsiness, and more frequent bedwetting.
Children may also respond poorly to the medication or have an allergic reaction.the National Institutes of Health said.
There could be effects on hormonal development. The agency said: “Because melatonin is a hormone, it is possible that melatonin supplements could affect… puberty, menstrual cycles, and overproduction of the hormone prolactin.”
Melatonin is a hormone crucial to the body’s sleep-wake cycle, with levels rising at night when the sun sets, signaling it’s time to go to bed, and dropping to almost zero during the day. .