The Lagos State Government has confirmed that the recent Cholera Outbreak in Lagos is linked to an unregistered tigernut drink in circulation.
The Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Health, Kemi Ogunyemi revealed this to Punch, stating that the organization had observed an increase in Cholera cases particularly in the Eti-Osa Local Government Area.
Result of a health survey also showed that several cases were linked a tiger nut drink in circulation as every Cholera patient affirmed that they took the tiger nut drink.
Further investigations showed that the tiger nut drink was not registered with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).
Ongoing efforts are being made to trace the source of the drink including the collection of samples and contact tracing, similar to the approach used during the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, these efforts were frustrated due to the drinks not being registred or having contact information.
Speaking on the water-borne infection she said;
“Of course, cholera is also water-borne, so we took samples of the water to test it. The bottom line is that we took stool samples because different things cause diarrhoea. It could be anything else.
We found out that it was confirmed cholera, specifically Vibrio cholera subtype 01, which is the most infectious and aggressive type. There are different types, but we identified this one.”
She urged the Lagos public to practice good hygiene and ensure that they verify items are registered with relevant government agencies before consumption
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