16 children have been hospitalized with food poisoning from lunch in a kindergarten in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, local education and health authorities confirmed on Friday.

 

Seven of the children, including one in serious condition, are receiving treatment with the others under medical observation at the Xinjiang Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital.

 

The sick children showed symptoms of diarrhea, vomiting and dizziness after eating a bean dish at lunch with 25 others on Wednesday in the No.3 Kindergarten of Urumqi, according to a teacher surnamed Shang.

 

There might be more sick children, Shang said as local education and health authorities investigated the incident.

 

(Xinhua News Agency October 27, 2006)