Bubble tea lovers beware: a recent CT scan of a 14-year-old girl in Zhejiang province revealed over 100 undigested tapioca pearls in her gastrointestinal tract.
The girl suffered severe constipation for five days, had a loss of appetite and was complaining that her stomach hurt. On the evening of May 28, when she could no longer bear the pain, her parents took her to Zhuji People’s Hospital where they made the shocking discovery.
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When Dr. Zhang saw the granular shadows appear on the X-ray, he asked the girl what she had recently eaten, to which she replied she had some pearl milk tea five days ago. Normally one cup of bubble tea would not cause a large reserve of undigested pearls, so Dr. Zhang concluded that something didn’t add up. As you could believe, this incident was caused by continuous bubble tea consumption over a period of time.
Image via The Paper
To dissolve the pearls lodged in her digestive tract, laxatives were prescribed.
Zhuji People’s Hospital later told The Paper that in addition to tapioca starch (the main ingredient for bubble tea pearls), some stores will add thickeners and additives, which ultimately creates an even larger burden on your stomach.
The next time you’re enjoying those chewy, soft sweet pearls please remember: everything in moderation!
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[Cover image via The Paper]
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