By Ogbitse Meyiwa
As of 21st June, Lagos had recorded 24 deaths and 35 verified cholera cases.
Kemi Ogunyemi, Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Health, said an investigation showed that people who visited hospitals all reported consuming a particular tiger nut drink. This discovery was made by the Ministries of Health and Environment, identifying the cause of the outbreak. She said officials were then dispatched to find the drink in order to test samples for cholera.
“We found empty bottles with a name on them, but we discovered that it wasn’t even registered with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), the regulatory body that ensures the safety of consumables,” she said. She added that there were other contributing factors to the pandemic, such as open defecation and a lack of potable water.
Kemi Ogunyemi further said the symptoms of the disease usually include abdominal pain, diarrhoea, fever, vomiting, and muscle pain. She urged Nigerians not to rely on self-medication after noticing such symptoms but to report to any nearby hospital.
“However, we anticipated an increase after the Ileya (Eid) celebrations, which indeed happened. Unfortunately, we also had an increase in deaths. That’s the unfortunate part. More people have died, and about three of them were already dead upon arrival from home. From our history, we realised they had diarrhoea and vomiting for the past two or three days, but they never came to the hospital. They were probably treating themselves locally, which we advise against. That’s how we know. We’re hoping for a decline as we continue our efforts in the community,” she said.
Nigeria is among 13 African countries battling cholera. The current outbreak has been ongoing since 2021, when the country reported 111,062 suspected cases, which included 3,604 deaths, according to data from the NCDC.
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