National
Child suffers chemical burns on her tongue from eating sour lollies
A Melbourne mum wants other parents to know the dangers of sour lollies after her child suffered chemical burns on her tongue from eating Warheads.
Willow Wright’s tongue experienced a painful chemical reaction after she ate around 10 Warheads lollies.
The little girl rightly said it felt like the skin was coming off of her tongue.
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She was left with a large hole on her tongue where the skin peeled off.
Mother Kirsty Wright said she was concerned about her daughter’s reaction to the lollies.
“I burst into tears because I was really worried,” she said.
“I’ve never seen this before.”
Ms Wright called her GP who said there wasn’t much they could do, suggesting using ice and Panadol to manage the pain while Willow’s tongue healed.
Dental Association of Australia’s Jonathon Teo said the lollies contained high levels of acid.
“The sour warhead lollies, in particular, can be very dangerous,” he said.
“Products with this level of acid or PH can cause chemical burns to cheeks and tongue.”
The dentist said his industry saw a lot of trauma and damage caused to teeth and gums by sour lollies.
Warhead lollies have a similar PH level to hydrochloric acid, being even stronger than lemon juice and Coca Cola.
There are clear warning signs on the packet, stating the lollies should only be consumed by children aged four and above.
However, dentists say the lollies should be avoided altogether due to the acidic coating.
Ms Wright has since thrown out all the lollies in her house.
“I just wanted to make aware to parents how dangerous these lollies are,” she said.
Little Willow has said she won’t be eating lollies again.
