Why you should NEVER feed your child slushies
no more icees!!!
Do you remember the classic blue & red slushies from Target, the gas station, or an ice slushie truck?
Maybe they’re one of your kids’ favorite treats. Being from Florida, I get it! A slushie seems like the perfect treat to drink on a hot day.
Unfortunately, a recent study came out after multiple incidents of extreme health reactions from kids under the age of 8 after drinking slushies. Let’s dive into exactly why these slushie drinks are so bad. After all, they seem to be just ice and sugar, right?
⚠️The Worst Offender in Slushies
You might think I’m going to talk about food dye or high fructose corn syrup. While those are bad, slushies contain something far worse. The worst ingredient in slushies might actually be one you’ve never heard of, glycerol.
Glycerol is additive added to many slushies, sugar-free included, that helps them stay thick and combined.1 “Glycerol is a sugar alcohol naturally found in fats and oils that is used as a sugar replacement. Besides slushie drinks, it is sometimes added to various other foods such as protein bars and shakes, dried fruit, chewing gum, and sugar-free candies,” (ABC News).2
Glycerol can become highly toxic to children under the age of 8 and lead to: dangerously low blood sugar, dangerously high levels of acid in the body (metabolic acidosis), loss of consciousness and even comatose states, and imbalanced electrolyte levels.
Did you know this??? A seemingly harmless drink can actually be deadly to kids!
🍒🫐Instead of Slushies, Make This!
Make fruit slushies at home for a fraction of the cost and with WHOLE-FOOD ingredients.
Blue Razz Slushie
Blend: ice, frozen red raspberries, frozen cherries, frozen strawberries, a dash of maple syrup, and a splash of coconut water.
Red Razz Slushie
Blend: ice, frozen blueberries, a dash of maple syrup, fresh lemon, and a splash of coconut water.
Glycerol intoxication syndrome in young children, following the consumption of slush ice drinks | Archives of Disease in Childhood.
Sugar-free slushies can make young kids seriously sick, new study suggests - ABC News.