Sanitisers have made children ill

MADRID: The number of Spanish children treated for poisoning after ingesting hand- sanitising gels has rocketed, as the country has become the hardest- hit by Covid- 19 in Western Europe – with almost 900 000 registered cases and more than 33 000 deaths.

The Spanish National Toxicological and Forensic Institute said yesterday reported intoxications from gels so far this year was 874, 10 times those reported last year.

Children accounted for twothirds of the cases. Most had swallowed the gel. Others got it in their eyes, or had inhaled it. Common symptoms were digestive irritation, vomiting, diarrhoea, coughing, red eyes, blurred vision.