Evidence of CMAM
Within a few days, the Acute Encephalitis Syndrome that has been rampant in Muzaffarpur, Bihar had claimed lives of more than 110 children in the state. This is one of its kind, but there had been various assumptions regarding the same. The intake of unripe litchis is being called as the main reason for deaths. But is it true? Or litchis just added fuel to fire. In the year 2012-2013, a two-member team headed by virologist Dr T. Jacob John suspected, and then next year confirmed, litchi fruit contained a the toxin which was responsible for causing the hypoglycaemic encephalopathy (The Hindu, 19 June’ 2019). But the current data also shows that the unripe litchi intake did not affect the nourished or healthy children, it affected the poor malnourished children who did not have food night before which makes the blood sugar level to drop and the toxic reacts differently. A malnourished body is unfit to fight any bacteria or virus due to the low level of immunity, the SAM chi