According to Mr. Ha Dinh Ngu, Deputy Director of the Thanh Hoa Center for Preventive Medicine, he informed reporters that on the morning of March 29, 2006, the number of people suffering from poisoning due to consuming silkworms and silkworm pupae had surged dramatically.
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| Consumers should be cautious with silkworms and silkworm pupae raised on mulberry leaves, as they can easily cause poisoning when consumed. |
As of this morning, the total number of poisoning cases has reached 183 patients, the majority of whom are children.
Among those affected, Cam Thuy district has the highest number of patients, with 120 individuals (including 112 from the mountainous commune of Cam Quy and 8 from Cam Thach; Vinh Loc district has 23 cases, and Ba Thuoc has 40 cases).
The patients reported that in recent days, they purchased silkworms and silkworm pupae from street vendors (identified as being from Yen Dinh district) at local markets.
Mr. Ngu further stated that on the morning of March 29, the Thanh Hoa Center for Preventive Medicine, in collaboration with the Yen Dinh District Health Center and relevant authorities, is conducting inspections and collecting samples from the source of the silkworms and pupae at the Thai Thinh silk production facility (located in Dinh Lien commune, Yen Dinh district) to send to central authorities for testing and to obtain an official conclusion regarding the cause of the recent food poisoning incidents in the aforementioned districts.
News and images: HA DONG
