MEMPHIS, Tenn. — More than 2,000 healthcare providers across the state are being warned about what some teenagers are using to get high: It’s called Dewshine, a mixture of racing fuel and Mountain Dew.
The dangerous drink has already killed two Tennessee teens and made two others sick.
It didn’t settle well with a parent of four when he learned two teens died in Robertson County after drinking racing fuel and Mountain Dew.
“Parents should pay more attention to what they have at home, to keep their children safe,” said Jerry Porter.
The Tennessee Poison Center’s medical director told WREG the teens apparently thought they were drinking a substitute for alcohol. While doctors said taking dewshine does not appear to be a local trend, they are coming across problems.
“We haven’t seen with that specific concoction, the ingredient that’s in racing fuel that is so deadly, though was a very common poisoning that we see, methanol is something that’s found in things like anti-freeze and deicing fluid that we may see this time of year,” said Jon McCullers with LeBonheur Children’s Hospital.
McCullers said oftentimes people confuse methanol with ethanol.
“We see quite a lot of ingestion with people who confuse that with other types of alcohol that might be good for drinking,” he said.
Doctors at the hospital said education is key and parents need to make sure they’re taking extra steps to keep their children safe.
The Tennessee Poison Center said the four cases out of Robertson County are the only cases reported so far.
