Alarm in Japan for the possible link between the death Of at least 81 people and the consumption of supplements Of red rice fermented against the cholesterol. To raise fears about the possible lethal effects of the drug it was the same manufacturing company, Kobayashi Pharmaceutical, which announced that it would conduct tests on the victims to verify the cause-effect relationship of taking the capsules. In addition to deaths, the use of these supplements would have caused more than a thousand cases of illness among citizens.
The dead in Japan
The scandal that has overwhelmed the pharmaceutical company continues in Japan for several months. In April, Kobayashi executives announced the product was being recalled after reports of the first five deaths in March, potentially linked to the intake of the red yeast rice capsules.
Before the marketing ban, 166 people were thought to have been poisoned by food supplements, requiring hospitalization.
An image of red yeast rice supplements
The announcement of the pharmaceutical company
“We’ve received 1,656 requests from people who sought medical care and we have 76 cases under investigation for a (causal) connection to the deaths,” the company announced in a statement, which, according to what has been reconstructed, would have been subjected to investigations as early as October 2023 following the cases of poisoning.
To date, the Japanese Ministry of Health has not disclosed the results of the tests, but according to what was reported by the head of Health, Keizo Takemi, the company failed to adequately report to the government.
“This is extremely regrettable. The investigation of fatal cases cannot be left to Kobayashi Pharmaceutical, and the ministry will handle it directly,” the minister said.
The recall of anti-cholesterol red yeast rice supplements
Il red yeast rice contains a natural active ingredient that is effective in combating cholesterol in the blood and is used as an alternative to traditional statin-based medicines.
According to the company, as reported by the Japan Times, it is very likely that an “unintentional” substance contained in its “Beni kоji”, produced between July and October 2023, caused the illnesses.
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