From the moment Dani Morin learnt she was pregnant, she was absolutely smitten with her little man, Deacon.
Dani believed in so-called “crunchy mum” parenting, a child-rearing style which embraces natural remedies and aims to be environmentally responsible.
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After Deacon was born, the new mum was using cloth nappies and thinking about how to prepare organic foods, adhering to a holistic approach which some have labelled “neo hippie”.
Among gift items she had requested for her baby shower was a Baltic amber teething necklace, comprised of small beads which purport to soothe teething pain.
And when her baby boy was six months old, Dani placed the item around his neck, hopeful it would help him as his teeth started to come through.
A year later, Deacon was strangled – his devastating death caused by the amber necklace.
“It was a rite of passage in the crunchy mum community to have your kid in a Baltic amber necklace,” Dani tells 7Life.
“(It was) so freaking dumb”.
When the American woman fell pregnant in 2014, she began to research “all-natural” parenting styles.
Motherhood felt like a blessing to the single mum, and she wanted to provide the best possible life for her son.
That’s when she discovered the “crunchy mum” ethos, which promotes replacing toxic chemicals with natural remedies and switching out modern-day products with environmentally friendly choices.
Dani loved the idea of leading her son down a more conscious route in life.
“So I used cloth diapers because it was ‘better for the environment’ and ‘better for baby’s skin’,” Dani explains.
“At one point, I co-slept because ‘it would increase my breast milk supply’.”
She found all her information via Google, mothers’ groups on Facebook or influencers on social media.
“No reputable sources,” Dani concedes.
“Believe it or not, I think for many new mums this still stands true today.”
Amber necklace
As Dani’s baby shower approached, she included a Baltic amber teething necklace in her gift registry.
The item’s fossilised tree resin beads – purported to contain succinic acid – are said to have anti-inflammatory and immune-boosting properties.
They are heavily marketed towards babies as a natural remedy to relieve teething pain and also suggest potential positive effects on conditions such as eczema and asthma.
When Deacon started teething, Dani didn’t second guess her choice to fasten the necklace around her son’s neck.
“The amber in the teething necklaces was said to be a natural way to help with inflammation during teething,” Dani says.
“The necklaces were to be worn at all times – this is how they are advertised.
“I had no concerns. They were extremely popular and they made claims to be ‘safe for baby’.”
Deacon
Deacon continued to grow into a cheeky, fun-loving toddler without any concerns.
“Life was beautiful with him. We had so many adventures and he was a cuddler,” Dani says.
“The sweetest soul I have ever known. He loved to love others.
“He also was very athletic, even at 18 months old, always kicking the soccer ball around, always on the go.”
The pair would travel around the US, exploring new beaches and parks together.
And when it came time to exit holiday mode and enter reality, Dani would pack Deacon’s bag for day care.
Each morning, the pair would have breakfast before Dani went to work and Deacon to day care.
But on October 5, 2016, Dani had no idea it would be the final meal that the pair shared.
“I woke up, got my son ready for day care and fed him eggs, toast, and cut up cherry tomatoes. His go-to,” the mum recalls.
At 3.30pm, she recalls feeling anxious – so anxious she left a conference call early and headed to Deacon’s day care.
“I drove around the corner to find fire trucks and ambulances, and I just knew it was Deacon,” Dani says.
“No one needed to tell me. I just knew.”
The next moments were a blur as the mum threw herself back in her car and sped to the hospital.
Once there, she was met by a shocking sight.
“I was watching my son code and doctors working on him,” she reveals.
“And, right there on his neck, was a strangulation mark.”
Selfless donation
For five days, Dani stayed by Deacon’s hospital bed, praying for a miracle.
But her baby boy never woke.
After he was formally pronounced dead – on October 10, 2016 – Dani bravely donated her little son’s organs.
For three days, the mother, numb with shock and grief, stayed in hospital until suitable donor recipients were found – ensuring that her son’s final act would help others.
And it did.
Deacon’s heart saved another child’s life and his other organs helped multiple individuals in need.
“Three days later, I left that hospital as someone I did not recognise,” Dani says.
“My passion, my life purpose, my reason for being, was ripped from me.”
From then, the mother was thrown into the whirlwind of funeral preparations – having to choose a tiny coffin in which to bury her cherished only son, and tying to write his eulogy.
“How does a mother just put how she feels, and describe her son’s life, on a piece a paper?” Dani says.
“I held hope, though, that the children who received my son’s heart and other organs would survive.
“I was so worried that their parents would have to pick out caskets.
“I did not know these people but I didn’t want them to have to pick out caskets too.”
Investigation
Deacon’s autopsy and post-mortem report took nearly a year to complete.
In that time, Dani says she never stopped thinking about her little man.
She constantly reviewed the website Etsy – from where a friend had purchased the necklace as a baby gift – to find the items still for sale.
“Words like ‘Safe for your baby’, ‘natural’ and ‘healing’,” she says.
“These Baltic amber teething necklaces were supposed to be helping my baby not hurting him.”
When the coroner handed down his report, Dani wasn’t surprised by his rulings.
The amber necklace was found to be consistent with his fatal injury – Deacon was strangled by it.
Dani was left alone and in pain all over again.
She armed herself for a legal battle and filed lawsuits against Etsy and the day care centre.
The centre’s owner and two of its employees were arrested on suspicion of child endangerment after not phoning paramedics upon the discovery of Deacon’s lifeless body.
The owner and one employee were jailed in 2018 and ordered to attend a child abuse treatment program, according to America’s ABC News.
Dani is legally not allowed to discuss her civil suit against Etsy.
No scientific proof
However, Dani continues to campaign against Baltic amber teething necklaces, which are still advertised as a teething aid around the world despite a lack of scientific proof.
A study conducted in 2019 by Canadian and Australian researchers determined the necklaces have no place in the medical field.
The study found that Baltic amber does not release succinic acid when worn next to the skin.
It also showed that succinic acid is not an anti-inflammatory.
The research also highlights the potential risk of death and injury.
In the same year, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission also issued a warning about the amber teething necklaces, and state and territory governments followed with their own consumer cautions.
Despite medical and government bodies rallying behind the potentially deadly item, it is still readily available to purchase.
After years of healing, Dani decided to become a mum for the second time, and welcomed her second son, Rhett.
Rhett is now three and helping his mum change the world for the better.
The curious youngster has just started preschool and, together with his mum, the two are taking on the world.
If you wish to become an organ donor, or learn more about it, information can be found on the Australian government’s Organ and Tissue Authority’s website.
The authority says it takes just one minute to register as an organ donor – and that up to seven lives can be saved from a single person.
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