Health Canada Warns About The Dangers of Flame Colourant Packets
Health Canada has issued a warning about the dangers that flame colourant packages can possess. We’ve already poked fun at the fact that the fine print from one brand suggests not to cook over the flames, and now Health Canada notes that ingesting the packets can be harmful (duh!). These products contain potentially poisonous chemicals and can be mistaken for candy or food by children and adults.
Canadian Poison Centres have received more than 70 reports related to flame colourant packets over the past two years (2019 and 2020). The majority of these exposures involved ingestions and a small number of these ingestions have resulted in major health effects. The majority of the cases (67%) involved children under the age of 12. A third of the cases required treatment at a health care facility. Canadian Poison Centres have noted that some children and even adults have mistaken these products for candy or food due to their colourful packaging. Children or adults who swallow the contents of flame colourant packets may experience symptoms, including severe internal bleeding, and kidney and liver damage, which may lead to death.
If you or someone else has ingested one of these products:
Call a Poison Centre or your health care provider right away.
Have the product label handy to provide its information to the person who answers the phone.
Bring the original product container with you when seeking help.
Report the incident to Health Canada.
We don’t recommend using the products at all, but if you do… please use them responsibly.
