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The strong loonie and ticks that cause meat allergies: CBC's Marketplace consumer cheat sheet

Miss something this week? Here's the consumer news you need to know.

Apps that spy on you and bad news about tainted alcohol and slime toys

A bug sits on a leaf.
(James Gathany/Centers for Disease Control/Associated Press)

Miss something this week? Here's the consumer news you need to know from CBC-TV's Marketplace. Get this in your inbox every Friday. Sign up here.

This tick could ruin your barbecue

That's because its bite can cause a rare allergy to red meat. This hunter was bitten and now he can't eat anything made of beef, pork and lamb. And there's no treatment.

The aggressive Lone Star ticks are normally found in the U.S., but beware: The bugs have been spotted in New Brunswick.

How the strong loonie affects you

Earlier this week the Canadian dollar rose above 80 cents U.S. for the first time in two years.

So who wins? If you're planning a trip to the U.S. any time soon, this is good news for you. Online and cross-border shoppers will also find their dollars will go further. 

When lip filler parties go wrong

Have you heard of home lip augmentation parties? We wouldn't blame you if you hadn't.

A Toronto woman and her doctor are warning about the dangers of such parties after a lip treatment resulted in dangerous complications.

Someone who appears to have no medical qualifications injected a filler into her lower lip and hit a blood vessel, and she could have lost her lower lip.

Sears Canada's PR woes

The retailer has been trying to entice customers with its liquedation sales as it goes through its restructuring process. Instead, it's facing online backlash for not paying severance to laid-off workers.

"I will not spend one red cent in your store … no severance, no sale," posted one person. Comments got so bad Sears has stopped allowing them on its Facebook page.

The trouble with babies on board

This mother was turned away when she tried to board a P.E.I.-bound Air Canada flight from South Korea with her twin babies. 

It turns out you can't fly with more than one infant per adult because of Canadian safety regulations. But she says she was told otherwise when she booked her flight.

The airline refunded her, but she wants airlines to remind their agents about the rules.

What else is going on?

A warning for travellers headed to Mexico: Tourists have reportedly become sick after drinking tainted alcohol at Mexican resorts and one woman died.

Want to be happier? Researchers say you should hire a housekeeper because buying yourself time will make you happier than buying things.

Be careful with your breast milk. A preterm infant developed severe meningitis after being fed milk from a contaminated breast pump.

And this week in recalls: 

Parents, if your kids like to play with slime, watch out for this product and this product. And this toy slap bracelet may pose a laceration hazard. This deck coating contains more lead than the Canadian limit allows.

Are your apps spying on you? Privacy and your apps

Your apps you could be giving companies permission to track your location, read all your texts, access your photos, microphone and camera.

With help from data developers, we create a horoscope app to investigate how much we unknowingly reveal about ourselves. Watch it again on TV or online.