Health Scare in Japan|Supplement medicine reaction in japan | #travel #japan #india
Japanese dietary supplements at the center of an expanding health scare have now been linked to at least 157 hospitalizations, a health ministry official said Tuesday.
The figure reflects an increase from the 114 hospitalization cases that Kobayashi Pharmaceutical said on Friday were linked to its products containing red yeast rice, or beni kōji.
A Kobayashi Pharmaceutical spokeswoman confirmed the latest hospitalization cases without elaborating further.
On Friday, the company said it was investigating five deaths potentially linked to the dietary supplements, which are meant to lower cholesterol.
The government and the company are probing whether the supplements caused the deaths and other health problems, mostly with kidneys.
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical announced on March 22 that it was recalling three kinds of over-the-counter tablets containing beni kōji after customers reported kidney problems.
Red yeast rice consists of rice fermented with a mold culture. It has been used in food, alcoholic drinks and folk medicines for centuries around East Asia.
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical has said that it detected a potentially toxic acid produced by the mold at one of its factories.
Government officials have been carrying out inspections at the firm’s facilities in recent days.
The scandal has dominated headlines in Japan and was a trending topic on social media, where it has also sparked disinformation posts and conspiracy theories.