In September, China was thrust into headlines over tainted baby milk formula. In the beginning thousands of babies were sickened by the powdered formula, which was found to contain the industrial chemical melamine. By December, those numbers had grown drastically with the government announcing that at least six babies were killed and nearly 300,000 other were sickened after consuming the milk products. "Most of the sickened children received outpatient treatment only for small amounts of sand-like kidney stones found in their urinary systems, while a part of the patients had to be hospitalized for the illness," a government statement said. Since the outbreak, thousands of parents have been asking for compensation for their sickened and dead children. The chemical was later found in the U.S. in chocolate bars and baby formula that had been made in China.