The pediatrician warns against drinks rich in sugar falsely labeled as ORS, urging stricter regulations for dehydration treatment. File | Photo Credit: Hind
With temperatures rising across Telangana, the Hyderabad pediatrician released appeal, which urged medical experts and pharmaceutical distributors to stop recommending or selling drinks rich in sugar that falsely declare that it is an oral rehydration solution (ORS). The call comes in the middle of growing fears of misleading marketing practices and a constant increase in the death of children caused by diarrhea.
The urban pediatrician and first aid trainer pointed out Sivaranjani Santosh to some popular products. Although it is sold as an electrolyte drink, it is not suitable for rehydration during diarrhea. When he was first launched, the manufacturers dealt with pediatricians and gave the impression that it was a real ORS solution. In fact, however, it contains sugar levels comparable to packaged soft drinks and fruit juices, with only a slight increase in sodium content. “We began to notice that many cases of child cases have deteriorated. On closer investigation we realized that the branded product is not the same as the ORS,” she said.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends oral rehydration solutions (ORS) with a total osmolarity of 245 mosm/l. This standard formula contains 2.6 grams of sodium chloride, 1.5 grams of potassium chloride, 2.9 grams of sodium citrate and 13.5 grams of anhydrous (sugar) per liter.
For comparison, some ORS packets produced by pharmaceutical organizations and sold on the market contain approximately the total sugar content of 120 grams per liter, of which 110 grams are added sugar. They also have 1.17 grams of sodium, 0.79 grams of potassium and 1.47 grams of chloride per liter.
“ORS is a life -saving therapy that has saved millions of lives. However, we now see an increase in products that abuse the ORS label to sell high sugar beverages with a level of osmolarity that can actually worsen diarrhea,” she added.
High sugar beverages should not be used instead of ors-mining saving life that saved millions of lives | Photo Credit: The Subesendu Ganguly
Dr. Sivaranjani mentioned that several popular brands are often launched as a rehydration solution, although it contains sugar 6 to 10 times higher than the World Health Organization (WHO). These products, although available in pharmacies and commonly designed for dehydration associated with diseases such as dengue and typhus, are licensed rather under the Office for Food and Food Standards in India (FSSAI) than in the central standard control organization (CDSCO), which regulates ORS therapeutic products.
After the pressure of FSSAI healthcare professionals in April 2022, it banned the use of “OR” on such sugar. However, the regulatory authority regulated the decision in July of the same year, which allowed manufacturers to continue using the ORS designation with the exclusion of liability – “This is not ORS.”
“Resistance is not enough. Most parents, and even some doctors, are a package of mistake. These drinks are not only ineffective but dangerous to sick children and people with diabetes,” Sivaranjani.
It now requires stricter regulatory intervention, including a complete ban on the use of “ORS” for such products, their removal from both hospital and retail pharmacies and recovery of the formulations of approved WHO as the only standard for dehydration treatment. She also called for a healthcare provider to stop recommending these misleading alternatives.
Published – April 26, 2025 20:37
