THE furious mother of an eight-year-old girl who claims she was given a 40 per cent proof alcohol drink by teenagers today said: "It's unbelievable. They could have killed her."

Debbie Macro said her daughter Gemma suffered damage to the lining of her stomach and needed constant medication since the incident.

But she is angry that the teenagers will not be punished because the child suffered similar symptoms in the past.

Gemma, of Lancaster Drive, Padiham, claims she drank a large swig of flavoured vodka drink Aftershock from a pop bottle.

Mrs Macro said: "My 15-year-old daughter was looking after her and they went out to get a video when they saw the two 15-year-olds.

"Gemma wanted a drink and she said they offered her a drink from a pop bottle and told her it was blue bubblegum pop. Within 20 minutes she started being sick."

Mrs Macro said Gemma was off school for three and half weeks and has suffered from constipation ever since.

"I'm running her to hospital every week for check-ups and she's on three lots of medicine at the moment to build the lining up in her stomach and make her go to the toilet."

The family reported the incident in September to police and have been waiting for the girls to be charged. Police this week confirmed they would take no action in the case.

A police spokeswoman said: "We are aware of the case and the victim was interviewed but no criminal offence has been committed.

"A few months before the incident the girl had been ill with a stomach upset. The consultant was unable to prove that her illness was caused by the alcohol."

But Debbie said: "She had that condition 12 months before the incident and had been discharged from the hospital five to six months before. She was in the clear.

"I feel there is no justice system. They could've killed her. It's unbelievable."

Doctor Alexander Green, a gastro expert at Burnley General Hospital, said explained: "In general, alcohol can cause inflammation of the stomach lining, depending on how concentrated the alcohol content is. It depends on the percentage.

"With adults it would have to be very high, maybe half a bottle of whisky in a short space of time.

"The stomach recovers very fast. If something irritates on a one-off basis you would expect it to recover in the short term.

"It's more likely to be the psychological problem of what happened that generates the problems. I have treated patients with damage through psychological trauma. Constipation can result from this sort of situation."