An epidemiological study of burns in Asian ethnic minorities
in the UK revealed that scalds were the most common
cause of burn, although the specific causative agents were not
detailed [9]. Furthermore, a greater proportion of thermal
injuries were seen in the Asian population. From anecdotal
experience and to partly reflect the ethnic diversity of the UK,
with relevance to burns, a particular study was performed to
examine the cooling properties of Indian tea. The results
indicate that Indian tea cooled at a slower rate than water,
coffee and tea (with and without milk). This could be explained
by the way Indian tea is prepared in thatthe milk is boiled with
the tea before being served. Furthermore, larger proportions of
milk are used when making Indian tea and as a result the
cooling rate is similar to boiled milk. This will have implications
when assessing patients who have sustained a scald
injury as a result of ‘‘Indian tea’’ as compared with ‘‘English
tea’’.
The cooling properties of takeaway beverages revealed a
lower starting temperature than drinks prepared in the home,
but as these liquids were served in cardboard cups (with the
lids left in place) they retained heat for substantially longer
periods. The takeaway drinks which were made with cold milk
(cappuccino, latte and soya latte) had lower initial temperatures
but cooled at a similar rate to black coffee (Americano).
Legal proceedings, which have been well publicised, have been
taken against companies for serving hot drinks at too high
temperatures [10] and although warnings are placed on
takeaway beverages, these liquids have the potential to cause
a scald injury 30–60 min after being served. The prolonged
retention of heat will be related to the type of vessel the drinks
were served in. This is in keeping with the results of
Ramanathan et al. [5], in which the cooling gradient of tea
and coffee was examined in four types of cups, and supported
by our findings of the considerably longer time taken for coffee in an insulated mug and boiled water left to cool in a kettle to reach ‘safe’ temperatures.