Ice slush drinks not suitable for children under seven, FSA warns

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has updated its advice that slush ice drinks containing glycerol are not suitable for children under seven.

It follows research in the Archives of Diseases in Childhood earlier this year reporting 21 cases of children aged between two and seven years in the UK and Ireland who needed hospital treatment after drinking a ‘slushy’.

Previous advice had been that they should be avoided in the under-fives.

The FSA also called for a ‘greatly enhanced voluntary approach’ for industry to help manage glycerol intake in young children over the longer-term.

Most slush ice drinks that are marketed as sugar free instead contain the sweetener glycerol which stops them from freezing completely solid.

Researchers wanted to see stronger warnings because of cases of glycerol intoxication syndrome where children lost consciousness and showed signs of low sugar and high acidity in the blood.

One of the cases reported had suffered a seizure and four of them needed brain scans.

While recommendations around avoiding them in young children had been based on weight, estimating a safe dose was not easy and could be influenced by how quickly an ice slush drink is consumed or whether the child has eaten or been very active, they noted.

An assessment by the FSA incorporated information from ‘recent glycerol intoxication incidents’ and assessed the impact of one serving of slush ice drink (350ml with 50,000mg/L glycerol) on children with a lower-than-average body weight for their age.

It took a more ‘precautionary approach’ than the previous risk assessment conducted in 2023, which was based on average body weight.

At a meeting on 18 June, the FSA Board endorsed advice that slush ice drinks containing glycerol are not suitable for children under seven, which should be clearly communicated to parents and carers.

Professor Susan Jebb, FSA chair said: ‘In the warm weather, children may be more likely to consume slush ice drinks containing glycerol, so it’s important that parents and carers are aware of the risks.

‘As a precaution, the FSA is recommending that children under seven do not consume slush ice drinks containing glycerol.

‘With our counterparts in Scotland, we will be talking to parent groups and charities to provide updated guidance that is useful and applicable across the UK.’

She said the board expected industry to share data on the quantity of glycerol in their products to inform our future work.

‘Meanwhile, there are immediate actions they can take that can help protect children and reduce the risk from these products. For example, retailers should limit cup sizes and should not offer free refill promotions to children under 10.’

The updated advice applies to ready-to-drink slush ice drinks with glycerol in pouches and home kits containing glycerol slush concentrates, the FSA confirmed.