Slushies Can Cause Glycerol Intoxication Syndrome in Children Under Eight!

Posted in Our Blog on May 14, 2025

If glycerol intoxication syndrome sounds scary, that’s because it is. One of the main causes of this reaction comes from something that, other than loaded with sugar, is seemingly harmless.

The slushie.

Gas stations, movie theaters, and convenience stores entice children and adults alike with the cool texture and sweet flavor spinning in the froster.

For children, this sweet treat can cause serious consequences. And I am not talking about brain freeze. I mean seizures.

Have I got your attention now? It certainly surprised me!

Recent Study Brings Glycerol Intoxication Syndrome from Slushies Public Attention

Scientists from the UK and Ireland recently published a paper in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood titled “Glycerol Intoxication Syndrome in Young Children, following the consumption of slush ice drinks.”

The study was led by professor Ellen Crushell, Metabolic Paediatrician at Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) Temple Street and Clinical Professor at UCD School of Medicine, with Dr. Shona Brothwell, Paediatric Metabolic Specialist Registrar at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, and Patricia Fitzsimons, Chief Medical Scientist at CHI’s National Metabolic Laboratory.

Publicizing the results of the study is important because it brings to light this important phenomenon.

“We found that glycerol in slush drinks can cause glycerol intoxication syndrome in young children,” said Crushell. “The research is significant because this illness has only rarely been described before in the medical literature and never in association with slush ice drinks.

The study was essentially a case review that analyzed glycerol intoxication syndrome cases from the UK and Ireland between 2009 through 2024.

The results of this study have made their way across the Internet and onto the social media and webpages of parents and caregivers across the world. The seriousness of the situation has prompted health agencies in many countries to issue guidance on slushie consumption for children.

The Study

A total of 21 cases were analyzed for this study. Cases include information on children aged two years through six years and nine months that were admitted to emergency centers following consumption of slushie drinks. The average age was three years and six months old.

Most children presented the same symptoms.

Common symptoms included:

• acute decrease in consciousness (94% of cases)
• hypoglycaemia (95% of cases) – drop in blood sugar
• metabolic (lactic) acidosis (94% of cases) – decrease in blood pH
• pseudohypertriglyceridaemia (89% of cases) – free glycerol in the blood interferes with triglyceride tests
• hypokalaemia (75% of cases) – drop in potassium levels
• glyceroluria found in all acute urine organic acid samples

According to reports, four children needed brain scans and one child experienced seizure.

All children needed urgent resuscitation with IV glucose and fluids.

After care, all children recovered and were discharged from the hospitals with the advice to avoid slushies. The majority of children (95%) avoided slush ice drinks and did not have recurrence of symptoms.

What is Glycerol?

Glycerol is a sugar alcohol often used in slush ice drinks. It serves the dual purpose of both sweetening the beverage and preventing the liquid from fully freezing. Thus, making the slushie texture that gives the product its name.

Children do not tolerate this sugar alcohol very well.

Several Health Authorities Request Voluntary Compliance to Prevent Glycerol Intoxication Syndrome in Children

In response to this information, a few countries’ public health authorities have issued guidance for voluntary compliance in an effort to prevent glycerol intoxication syndrome in children.

So far, I have come across guidance from UK’s Food Standards Agency, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, and Food Standards Scottland.

UK Guidance:

• Children under five years should avoid glycerol containing slush drinks
• Children six years to 11 should have no more than one.

Ireland Guidance:

• Children four years and under should not consume slush ice drinks
• Children between five and 10 years should consume no more than one slush ice drink in a day

So far, the Food Standards Scotland has made the largest move to protect children from glycerol intoxication syndrome from slushie drinks. In addition to indicating that products containing glycerine, glycerol, or additive number E422 are not suitable for children under age four, they have published industry guidelines for glycerol in slush ice drinks. While this is not yet a legal requirement, the guidance appears official enough to compel compliance.

1. Brand owners will ensure that their customers are fully aware of the FSA’s risk assessment of the use of glycerol in slush ice drinks.
2. Brand owners will formulate products to contain glycerol at the minimum quantity technically necessary to achieve the required ‘slush’ drink effect.
3. Brand owners will advise their customers that sales of slush ice drinks containing glycerol should be accompanied by a written warning visible at point of sale that ‘Product contains glycerol. Not recommended for children 4 years of age and under’.
4. The business model of free refills is not recommended in venues where children under the age of 10 years will consume them.

So far, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not chimed in on the matter. But with national moves toward removing dyes from food and other concerns, we may see something soon about the subject of glycerol in slushie drinks.

Advice for Parents

Of course, there are countless numbers of children who have consumed slushie drinks each year. Most with either no side effects or milder illness. It has a lot to do with the child’s weight and how they metabolize glycerol.

“To be safe, and to account for normal variations in children’s weights, the guidance not to consume could possibly extend to children under eight years of age” and “transparency around the dosage of glycerol used in these drinks is required,” said professor Crushell on the variability of tolerance in children to glycerol.

They do add that sugary drinks containing glycerol have no real health benefits. And are therefore not a part of a healthy diet for children of any age.

Is the Recent News of Glycerol Intoxication Syndrome in Children New Information to You?

Was the recent news of glycerol intoxication syndrome in children from slushie drinks new information to you?

It was to me!

I do remember drinking these beverages as a kid. Especially traveling on road trips through areas with 7-11’s, as my town didn’t have them. Did I conk out in the car from a sugar high? Maybe. Were there different ingredients in those nostalgic drinks? Perhaps.

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By: Heather Van Tassell (contributing writer, non-lawyer)