Drink sachets pose a health risk for children

by Carol Aloysius

Sugary drinks, iced-flavoured thirst quenchers, and ready-made iced-flavoured milk consumption, a new trend in food among schoolchildren can often end up in various health ailments, warns Head of the Toxicology Centre, National Hospital Sri Lanka (NHSL) Dr Waruna Gunathileke.

"The sachets I'm referring to are tiny and made of plastic. As there are no straws, children drink the contents straight off the packet. This is not only unhygienic, it can also pose other health risks as well", he said.

Many of these sachets carry a brand name or a manufacturer's name with other details printed in coloured inks and these inks have toxic pigments.

"When a child puts a sachet with this coloured ink into his or her mouth, it can have an impact on his health as the pigments are toxic," he said.

The National Poisons Information Centre(NPIC) has received several complaints from parents who said that after ingesting the contents of these sachets, children had developed diarrhoea and vomiting," he said.