Why iced slushy drinks can be dangerous after two children nearly died within weeks

Parents are being warned to reconsider what they give their young children to drink after two youngsters nearly died within weeks of one another.

That's not to say you can't reward your Rugrats with a treat, but you might want to get clued up on how some common drinks can have serious health ramifications for our little people that a lot of adults are unaware of.

Beth Green is raising awareness about the dangers of popular refreshments for kids after her four-year-old son was rushed to hospital and almost died after downing an iced slushy drink.

The terrified mum, from Nuneaton, Warwickshire, told how little Albie suddenly became unresponsive following an after-school trip to a bowling alley with a friend on 13 October 2023.

The lad was 'happy and excited' while he and his pal both drank a strawberry-flavoured slushy drink, but his mum noticed he had become 'tired and agitated' within half an hour and then 'wouldn't eat his food'.

His condition drastically deteriorated when she dropped his schoolfriend off and the four-year-old started 'hallucinating', 'clawing at his face' and 'screaming then going floppy again'.

When Albie became unresponsive, she decided to rush him to A&E - but he went even more downhill on the way.

Beth said: "At this point, I don't even recall if he was breathing. He was a dead weight when I carried him through the door, he was unconscious. They were shaking, trying to wake him up but he wasn't responding.

"They took him to the resus room where they started giving him rescue breaths because he wasn't breathing by himself and his heartbeat was extremely low. They had to resuscitate him."

Kennedy News and Media

His parents didn't know if their son would make it through the night at one point, with a doctor telling them they could have lost him if they had gone home instead of heading to A&E.

Fortunately, Albie spent three days in hospital and was then allowed home after the slushy drink scare.

Another mum, Victoria Anderson, has also shared her own horror story of how her three-year-old almost died after drinking a slushy just a few weeks ago.

She explained that she had been out shopping with her little boy Angus and one of his older siblings on 4 January when he spotted a bright pink beverage swirling around inside a slushy machine in a local corner shop.

The 29-year-old, from Port Glasgow, Scotland, bought her son the raspberry-flavoured drink as he asked, although he had 'never had a slushy before'.

Around half an hour later, Angus suddenly collapsed and fell unconscious while the trio were in another store.

The mum recalled how the three-year-old's body became limp and 'stone cold' while she waited for paramedics to arrive.

Angus was eventually rushed to Glasgow Children's Hospital, where he didn't regain consciousness for another two hours as his blood sugars dipped dangerously low.

Thankfully, the incredible work of medics meant that the youngster was treated and that he went on to make a full recovery.

But how did a 'harmless' slushy drink manage to hospitalise two little boys?

Getty Stock Photo

Medics said they both most likely suffered from glycerol intoxication after consuming the refreshment, which can trigger sweating, irritability, lethargy, shock, hypoglycaemia and loss of consciousness.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) introduced new guidance on slushy drinks last year because they contain this additive and recommended that they should not be sold to children aged four or younger.

Glycerol, also referred to as E422, is a key ingredient in the popular drinks as they stop the liquid from freezing solid, preserving the slush-like consistency, while also acting as a sugar-free sweetener.

It is generally of low toxicity and the amount used in the slushy's does not affect adults or older children - but little kids can't process the glycerol the same due to their difference in body weight in comparison, so it instead builds up inside.

The FSA says that very high levels of exposure 'intoxicates' children and that this is typically brought on when 'several of these products are drunk by a child in a short space of time'.

But little ones under the age of four could be tipped over the edge of the 'safe' threshold after drinking just one 350ml drink which contains glycerol.

The FSA's Head of Additives, Adam Hardgrave, said: "While the symptoms of glycerol intoxication are usually mild, it is important that parents are aware of the risks – particularly at high levels of consumption.

"It is likely that there is under-reporting of glycerol intoxication, as parents may attribute nausea and headaches to other factors.

"We are grateful to those manufacturers who have already taken steps to reduce levels of glycerol, and to those who have already told us they will be adopting our new guidelines."