Can instant noodles kill? Perhaps, if we are to believe information published by the Egyptian media Al Arabiya.
Raw noodles, the young victim’s last meal
Police in El-Marg, a district of Cairo, had been informed of the death of a child at his home. Upon arrival, the security forces discovered the body of a 13-year-old boy without visible injuries or traces of criminal act. On the other hand, the preliminary investigation revealed that the teenager had consumed three packages of noodles at once. Instant noodles devoured.
According to the autopsy practiced, the product met the standard specifications. Normal use would therefore not have caused the young man’s death. Doctors then referred to excessive consumption of raw noodles, likely to cause serious complications such as acute intestinal disorders or digestive occlusion.
Dry noodles absorbed gastric liquids
A possibility that confirms for us Dr Gérald Kierzek, emergency artist and medical director of True Medical.
“Dry instant noodles are extremely dehydrated and hard. They are designed to absorb a large amount of water when cooked and become soft. When they are ingested dry, they arrive in the stomach and start to absorb gastric liquids and intestinal secretions. They do not” rehydrate “optimally as in boiling water”.
The noodles will then gradually inflate in the digestive tract, with the risk of intestinal occlusion. “”By eating three affiliated packages, a huge and compact mass of semi-inflated and sticky noodles forms. This mass becomes too large and too dry to pass the intestines, in particular at the level of naturally narrower areas (such as the ileo-cecale valve, between the small intestine and the colon). It completely obstructs the passage, causing an intestinal occlusion “.
Add to this an intense dehydration factor, since the noodles in question draw water directly from the body tissues. The teenager therefore probably faced a critical electrolytic imbalance.
“Without urgent medical intervention (which may require surgery to withdraw obstruction), intestinal occlusion can cause necrosis (dead) of intestinal tissues, perforation, sepsis and death”.
A problem that can happen, even without fragile health
The case does not say that the teenager was of fragile condition. But rather that he could have adopted such behavior by taking up the Tiktok challenge, the “Eat Ramen Raw Challenge“. A challenge which is indeed to eat dry noodles. An idea that was fatal to it.
To this, our emergency artist reminds us: even a stomach and perfect health intestines are not designed to manage such a dry and expansive mass.
“The” good health “of the person does not change the mechanics of the problem: an object that inflates and exceeds the diameter of the duct in which it is will cause a cap. The amount ingested (three packets) is the key factor here”.
Food challenge: why is this one dangerous?
Under the guise of feasting on seasoned raw noodles, the challenge “Eat Ramen Raw Challenge” forgets to restore the truth: beyond being little digestible, it is dangerous.
“Eating dry noodles in large quantities has several other serious dangers, sometimes even without going to occlusion” Analysis our expert.
- Suffering (false road): The hard and crunchy texture of dry noodles makes them difficult to chew properly and swallow. They can easily be inhaled in the airways, blocking trachea and causing asphyxiation;
- Severe dehydration and electrolytic imbalance: As explained, the absorption of body fluids by noodles can lead to significant dehydration, causing confusion, extreme weakness, tachycardia and kidney failure;
- Severe digestive disorders: Even in small quantities, this can cause violent abdominal pain, extreme bloating, constipation or, paradoxically, severe diarrhea due to the irritation of the intestine;
- Salt overdose and additives: The seasoning of the sachets are extremely concentrated in salt, exhaustors of taste (such as monosodic glutamate) and conservative. They can also cause additive intoxication.
So many good reasons to flee this type of challenge!