An Australian teenager has become the sixth foreign tourist to die in a suspected mass methanol poisoning in Laos, as a growing list of countries warned of the potentially fatal consequences of drinking tainted alcohol in the Southeast Asian country.

What is methanol, symptoms of methanol poisoning and how can tourists avoid it after Laos deaths? - Foreign Office advises tourists how to avoid alcohol that may be accidentally toxic or may be counte

The Laos government said on Saturday (Nov 23) that it was "profoundly saddened" by the deaths of foreign tourists in Vang Vieng, with the toll from a suspected methanol poisoning incident now at six.