Hyderabad doctor quits Indian Academy of Paediatrics over ORS controversy, pharma notice

Hyderabad: A city-based paediatrician who had raised concerns over the alleged misbranding of electrolyte drinks as Oral Rehydration Solutions (ORS) products has resigned from the Indian Academy of Paediatrics, alleging that its leadership failed to support her and did not condemn the legal notice issued against her by pharmaceutical companies.

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that Dr Sivaranjani Santosh was served a legal notice by pharma companies, alleging that her social media posts about their products were misleading and defamatory. The companies accused her of making false and disparaging remarks and warned of defamation action if she did not delete her posts.

Amid the controversy, several medical associations and doctors came out in her support, stating that doctors should be allowed to raise evidence-based public health concerns

However, Dr Santosh claimed that while the Indian Academy of Paediatrics is a respected body, its leadership failed to act responsibly in this case. She said that the IAP did not condemn the public statement by Kenvue claiming its products were presented at IAP, nor did it speak against the legal notice sent to her. Instead, the academy issued a position statement highlighting the safety of sucralose without warning parents about its possible long-term risks.

In a detailed post on social media platform X, the doctor said her decision to step down came after years of raising concerns about the involvement of companies like Kenvue and Johnson & Johnson over sugar-rich drinks such as ORSL being marketed as oral rehydration solutions (ORS) and the lack of support and transparency from IAP.

Announcing her resignation, she said remaining in the organisation had become "too suffocating," alleging that the leadership was more concerned about corporate funding than the safety of children.

She expressed disappointment that the IAP did not condemn a legal notice sent to her by Kenvue, nor a public statement by the company claiming that its hydration products were presented at PEDICON, the academy’s annual conference.

In a post on 'X', she said that the issue dates back over four years, during which she repeatedly wrote to the IAP urging it not to accept funds from certain corporations and to stop allowing promotional stalls for products like ORSL at conferences. She claimed most of her communications went unanswered.

"I called out IAP on social media after being patient for 4 years. They considered expelling me from the IAP. IAP continued with ORSL stalls. I had to call them out again, because I prioritized child health to IAP. I persisted with my PIL, writing to authorities, and on Social media. Letters from the parents, case reports from the paediatricians, and videos of parents being given the misbranded liquids in place of ORS. Finally, FSSAI gave the order that misbranding, misleading labelling and marketing of beverages as ORS is not allowed. The entire nation celebrated me except for IAP," she said in the post.

"So many paediatricians asked IAP leadership to atleast listen to me and voted in favour of asking Kenvue to rebrand its eRZL in such a way that it doesn't resemble the erstwhile ORSL, but the leadership didn't pay heed," she further said in another post.  

Background

Dr Santosh’s fight spans several years, including multiple Public Interest Litigations and sustained advocacy against the alleged misbranding of electrolyte drinks as ORS.

Following this, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) prohibited the use of the term ‘ORS’ on beverage labels unless they strictly meet World Health Organisation (WHO) standards.

However, on March 16, two major pharma companies issued a notice to the doctor accusing her of making slanderous remarks on social media about ORSL (Oral Rehydration Salt and Liquid) and its rebranded variant, ERZL.

The companies said in their legal notice that they are following the rules under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and that their claims are backed by government approvals and scientific evidence.

They also referred to ongoing legal proceedings in the Delhi High Court, where the judge observed that the products are “not adulterated or unsafe for use” and that the issue is mainly about branding. The companies denied claims that older ORSL products are still being sold or that ERZL is being promoted as a replacement for ORS.

Also read- Paediatrician served legal notice by pharma firms over ORS remarks, doctors flag threat to public health advocacy