Lychee Fruits Responsible For Outbreak Of Toxic Illness In India

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Every summer in the city of Muzaffarpur, India, there is an outbreak of a deadly brain illness called "chamki ki bimari" that affects children and usually sends them into coma.

Children suddenly fall ill, experience seizures usually during morning then fall into a comatose. About 40 percent of those affected die from the disease, according to Live Science. Outbreaks usually occurred during mid-May up to July, which coincides with lychee season. Muzaffarpur is the biggest lychee cultivation region in the country. Since 1995, there have been reported cases of the illness in Muzaffarpur but it was only recently that researchers finally discovered the culprit behind the disease.

In a new study published in The Lancet Global Health, researchers analyzed almost 400 cases of children who developed the illness in 2014 and compared them to 100 children who didn't have it. They analyzed spinal fluid and brain samples from the affected children and found that those who had fallen ill ate lychee. These children had no prior infection and were not exposed to pesticides. The researchers found that those who fell ill were 10 times more likely to have eaten the fruit.

The urine samples of the affected children revealed that two-thirds of them were exposed to two toxins that can be found in lychee seeds-hypoglycin and methylenecyclopropyl glycine. The more unripe the fruit is, the higher the levels of the two toxins present. These toxins can lead to brain inflammation and low blood sugar, CNN reported.

The researchers also discovered another crucial factor that explained why the sick children became affected with these toxins, while plenty of people eat lychee without falling ill. Children who usually fell ill skipped dinner and ate the lychee on an empty stomach, which would lead to hypoglycemia.

The Indian government advised the public to minimize their consumption of lychee in the affected areas and to eat meals with it during the outbreak period. Similar outbreaks have also been observed in other lychee farming regions such as in West Bengal, Bangladesh and Vietnam. Watch more about how lychee can become toxic when eaten on an empty stomach here: