PARENTS have been warned about the risk of sugar-loaded speciality milkshakes to their children’s future wellbeing.

Lancashire County and Blackburn with Darwen Borough’s public health bosses Dr Sakthi Karunanithi and Dominic Harrison spoke out after the campaign group Action On Sugar called for a ban on such drinks.

The concerns come as the number of dessert bars offering the children’s favourite in East Lancashire is growing.

Action On Sugar is demanding a ban on ‘freakshakes’ and all milkshakes with more than 300 calories after research by London’s Queen Mary University revealed some contained more than 35 teaspoons of sugar, six times the recommended daily intake for seven- to ten-year-olds.

Frankie and Benny’s on Blackburn’s Lower Audley Retail Park sells freakshakes but Heavenly Desserts and Kaspa’s Dessert Bar in the town stressed they did not.

Mr Harrison said: “I am concerned about the levels of sugar in some milkshakes. They are fine as an occasional treat but not as a regular part of a child’s diet.

“I would advise parents to be careful they do not reward their children with very sugary products such as milkshakes with added sweets and sugar too often.

“With regard to the growing number of dessert bars, I am not a killjoy and would not ban them or tell parents to avoid them, but ask them to be careful about how often they take their children there.

“Too much sugar can lead to major health problems in later life such as obesity and diabetes which are both on the increase.”

Dr Karunanithi said: “This type of milkshake is packed with sugar. Some can contain as much as 1,280 calories. This is a massive amount.

“Too much sugar can lead to health problems such as obesity and diabetes. We want people to be aware of this and take care not to drink too many sugary shakes.”

READ MORE: New dessert bar to open in Blackburn

A spokesman for Heavenly Desserts at Sudell Cross, which opened earlier this year, said: “We don’t serve freakshakes. Our milkshakes use gelato which has less sugar than ice cream. Our milkshakes are there to be a treat not a regular thing.”

Amjad Farooq, manager of Kaspa’s Desserts on Preston New Road, said: “We do not offer freakshakes. We serve mainly fruit-based milkshakes with a lower sugar content. They are intended as an occasional treat not as a regular thing for children.”

The Toby Carvery Unicorn Freakshake came top of the survey with 39 teaspoons of sugar or 1,280 calories.

Lancashire Telegraph:

Toby Carvery had two freakshakes in the top 10 of the survey, as did Harvester.

Both companies said they shared their nutritional information online, took their nutritional responsibilities seriously, had committed to Public Health England’s sugar reduction programme andwere not targeting children with their shakes.

It surveyed milkshakes sold in restaurants and fast food shops in the UK and found they contained “grotesque levels of sugar and calories”.

Freakshakes are milkshakes that also contain chocolates, sweets, cake, cream and sauce.

The Toby Carvery Unicorn Freakshake came top of the survey with 39 teaspoons of sugar or 1,280 calories.

That is more than half the daily recommended amount of calories for an adult and over six times the amount of sugar recommended for seven to 10-year-olds.

Lancashire Telegraph:

In terms of sugar, it is the equivalent of drinking more than five cans of cola.

The British Heart Foundation calculates an average 25-year-old would need to jog for nearly three hours or vacuum the house for five hours to burn off the calories.

The researchers found that many other shakes contain more than half the daily recommended amount of calories for an adult.

They say that of the 46 products included in the survey with nutrition labelling available online, all would receive a red/high label for excessive levels of sugar per serving.

Action on Sugar, which is made up of specialists concerned with sugar and its effects on health, are calling for mandatory traffic light-coloured nutrition labelling across all menus.

The government is currently consulting on menu calorie labelling.

Public Health England (PHE) also has a sugar reduction programme as part of the government’s childhood obesity plan. It is challenging businesses to cut sugar by 20% by 2020 and milkshakes are included in that.

Action on Sugar chairman Graham MacGregor, professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at London’s Queen Mary University, said that does not go far enough.

“These very high calorie drinks, if consumed on a daily basis, would result in children becoming obese and suffering from tooth decay - that is not acceptable,” he said.

“These high calorie milkshakes need to be reduced immediately below 300kcal per serving.”

Registered nutritionist Kawther Hashem, a researcher at Action on Sugar based at Queen Mary, said it was “shocking this information is hidden from the consumer, who would struggle to find it”.

She said it was “time the government introduced legislation to force companies to be more transparent about what is in their products”.

Dr Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist at PHE, said: “The food and drink industry - including restaurants, manufacturers and retailers - has a key role in helping to tackle this, by reducing the amount of sugar we buy and consume, and we hope to see them step up to the challenge.”

Freakshakes were invented in Australia, but have become increasingly popular in the UK in recent years and with their photogenic qualities are a popular posting on social media.

Toby Carvery's Unicorn Freakshake is made with grape and raspberry flavoured ice cream, blackcurrant jelly pieces, milk, freshly whipped cream and topped with marshmallow, skittles and almond macaroon.

Toby Carvery had two freakshakes in the top 10 of the survey, as did Harvester.

Both companies told the BBC that they shared their nutritional information online, took their nutritional responsibilities seriously, had committed to PHE’s sugar reduction programme and also were not targeting children with their shakes.

A Toby Carvery spokesperson added: “We also regularly work with our suppliers to explore ways we can reduce sugar levels in our dishes.”

And a Harvester spokesperson said: “We have also been recognised by the Soil Association Out to Lunch campaign for continuing to develop our children’s menu and offering healthier choices for young guests.”

Action on Sugar also looked at supermarket milkshakes and found that 90% of the 41 products surveyed would receive a red/high label for excessive levels of sugars.

The top three for sugars and calories were Muller Milk Frijj in chocolate, fudge brownie and cookie dough flavour.

A spokesperson for Muller said: “We know that for health conscious consumers, the choice of reduced sugar is important, without compromising on taste. That’s why we introduced a Frijj zero added sugar range.

“Milk contains naturally occurring sugars in the form of lactose but we would stress that it is also a natural and nutrient rich product, containing essential nutrients such as protein, calcium and vitamins.”