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Mum Forced To Feed One-Year-Old 1.5 Litres Of Coffee Per Day

Mum Forced To Feed One-Year-Old 1.5 Litres Of Coffee Per Day

She can't afford to buy her milk

Amelia Ward

Amelia Ward

A mum says she is forced to feed her young daughter three bottles of coffee a day because her family can't afford milk.

Little Hadijah, who is only 14 months old, is now addicted to caffeine. Her mum admits that she 'won't sleep' if she's not had her fix, saying that she drinks about 1.5 litres a day.

The young girl, from West Sulawesi, Indonesia, is apparently 'super active'. She became hooked on the hot drink when she was just six months old when her parents could no longer afford to buy her milk.

They gave her the Indonesian kopi tubruk, which is a simple and largely cheap Indonesian-style coffee. It's prepared by boiling coarse coffee grounds with sugar.

kompas.com

The couple, Sarifuddin and Anita have just 20,000 Indonesian Rupia a day, the equivalent of £1.13 ($1.41).

According to Indonesian news outlet Coconuts, Anita said that her husband's job of processing coconuts doesn't give them enough income to buy milk for the baby.

Kompas.com reported that the child's physical growth seemed consistent to normal children of a similar age, although the NHS advises: "Caffeinated drinks are also unsuitable for toddlers and young children."

Anita told Kompas: "What else can we do? Our income is not enough to buy milk. We're forced to give her coffee every day. In fact, she can't sleep if she hadn't had coffee. She can throw a tantrum asking for coffee before bed."

kompas.com

News website Coconuts says people living in poverty in Indonesia see milk as an 'unattainable luxury'.

A spokesman for the Polman Community Health said officials have visited the family, and have given the little girl biscuits and milk.

They told the baby's parents not to feed her any more coffee, as 'over time there will be an effect, because it contains caffeine and lots of sugar'.

It's not clear whether Hadijah's family have been offered any long term help to keep her off the coffee.

Featured Image Credit: kompas.com

Topics: World News