Japanese authorities ordered three food supplements based on “red rice”, a product that results from the fermentation of common rice and which is associated with a reduction in blood cholesterol levels, to be removed from shelves after the death of four people and hospitalization. of another 100.
At issue is the fermentation process with red yeast, which can produce high levels of citrinin, a toxin capable of causing kidney dysfunction.
According to a spokesperson for the pharmaceutical company that owns the three supplements, the four fatal victims precisely had kidney problems. Two had been taking the pills since 2021 and another since 2022.
The company began recalling the products before the suspected link between their consumption and the four deaths was announced, the cause of which remains to be determined.
On its website, Kobayashi Pharmaceutical explains that the fermentation process used in its “red rice” supplements – the popular “beni koji” – uses a strain of bacteria that does not produce citrinin. A preliminary investigation carried out by the company itself detected “unwanted” substances in some of the materials involved in the production of the products.
The pharmaceutical company believes that only one batch was affected and that it was manufactured between April and October last year and distributed between April and December.
Tags: Products lowering cholesterol suspected linked deaths hospitalizations Japan
