Indonesia bans cough syrup after 99 children die

 Indonesia has banned the sale of all types of cough syrup after 99 children died of kidney disease.

The ban will remain in place until an investigation by the Indonesian Ministry of Health into the cause of the illness is completed.

So far, 206 cases of kidney problems have been reported in Indonesia, and most of them are children under the age of 6.

Officials are investigating possible toxic effects of ingredients in the liquid medicine.

The spokesperson of the Ministry of Health said that so far only children have been affected and we have taken this decision to protect them.

According to the spokesperson, such cases started being reported from January, but their number has increased rapidly since August.

It should be noted that earlier in the African country of Gambia, 66 children died due to kidney failure due to the alleged use of an Indian company's cough syrup.

After that, four Indian medicines for cold, fever and cough were declared harmful to health by the World Health Organization.

According to the international organization, these liquid medicines are also being used in other countries.

These drugs were previously not allowed to be sold in Indonesia.

According to local authorities, glycerin or propylene glycol may be potentially contaminated and these ingredients are commonly used to make cough syrups.