In a recent incident, fourteen high school students in Tokyo were hospitalized after consuming super-spicy potato chips made from Naga Mircha (Bhut Jolokia), a chili cultivated in Nagaland and Northeastern India.
A student brought the chips to school “just for fun,” despite the manufacturer’s warning on the packet that the product was not suitable for those under 18.
Bhut Jolokia, also known as Raja Mircha or King Chilli, is one of the hottest chili peppers in the world. It is also popularly known as Naga Jolokia, Ghost Pepper, and Ghost Chili Pepper.
After consuming the super-spicy chips, several students experienced nausea and severe pain around their mouths.
Around 30 students tried the “R 18+ Curry Chips,” and 14 of them, including 13 girls and a boy, were hospitalized on July 16, as reported by the BBC.
One student fell so ill that they had to be transported to the hospital in a wheelchair, according to The Independent.
An emergency call was made after 13 first-year girls and one boy at Rokugo Koka High School in Tokyo consumed the chips at 12:40 pm on July 16. These students reportedly felt uneasy and experienced severe pain in their mouths and stomachs, according to the Tokyo Fire Department and local police as reported by Japan Today.
After eating the chips, the students began complaining of nausea and severe mouth pain, prompting emergency calls to the fire department and police.
The company that produces the snack, Isoyama Corp, issued a statement apologizing for “any inconvenience” to customers and wished the students a swift recovery. The company’s website contains numerous warnings about the crisps, called “R 18+ Curry Chips,” noting that they are “so spicy that they may cause pain.”
Besides the Over-18 warning, Isoyama Corp advises against consuming the crisps alone and warns of the potential for diarrhea if eaten excessively. The company also states that those with high blood pressure and weak stomachs are “absolutely prohibited” from eating the crisps and advises caution for those with cuts on their fingers when opening the packets. Those who are “timid or too scared” are also discouraged from trying the snack.
Bhut Jolokia, also known as Ghost Pepper, is one of the hottest chili peppers globally. This chili from Nagaland and Northeastern India measures a whopping one million units on the Scoville scale, the international measure of chili pepper heat. It is popularly known as Raja Mircha (King Chilli) and received a GI tag for Nagaland in 2008.
Bhut Jolokia held the title of the world’s hottest chili pepper according to the Guinness World Records from 2007 to 2011.
It was surpassed by the Trinidad Scorpion Butch T Pepper in 2011 and the Carolina Reaper in 2013.