Approaching the “path” leading to the risk of toxic alcohol

Medicinal plants soaked in wine are sold in Muong Xen town, Ky Son district. Photo: Ho Phuong

Muong Xen is the district town of Ky Son district, 25km from the Vietnam - Laos border, where Nam Can border gate is located. At the main market of the town and the selling points scattered along National Highway 7A through Muong Xen, it is not difficult to find items that are said to be medicinal herbs from forest plants. The easiest plants to find are still Morinda officinalis, Cynomorium barbarum, Cordyceps sinensis, Ganoderma lucidum and many other forest plants used to soak in wine that are advertised to be beneficial for physiology and cure a number of diseases.

Any vendor can talk endlessly about the wild plants on their stall. Some say that the Chinese clematis is good for men, that the Chinese clematis plant cures backaches, and that the lingzhi mushroom is a miracle drug. However, each person has their own opinion.

The sellers just innocently offered their products, and passersby also innocently bought them for their own use or as gifts. All of this happened many years ago, and it seems that the health and medicinal management agencies in this mountainous area have not paid much attention.

In Tuong Duong district, there are also places where wild plants used to make wine are sold everywhere along the national highway. For a long time, Cay Me village, Thach Giam commune has become a stopover for visitors. People also freely sell medicinal plants from wild plants next to agricultural products such as pumpkins, vegetables, fruits and other vegetables...

It is also easy to find Cordyceps sinensis, Chinese ginseng or banana seeds at stalls displayed right next to the main road.

It is not difficult to find jars of pre-soaked medicinal wine for sale in markets or highland towns. Photo: Dao Tho

In Kim Son town, Que Phong district, northwest of the province, among the "special medicines" from forest plants, only the yellow tea flower tree has been evaluated by local authorities for its medicinal effects...

Also because of the widespread sale of wild plants, along with advertisements about their uses, the habit of soaking wild plants that are said to have medicinal properties is also very popular in the highlands. Not only that, on some social network accounts said to be from the Nghe An highlanders, they also advertise the purchase of plants that are said to be medicinal herbs from the forest. These Facebook pages also sell traditional medicine and advertise that they can cure diseases, even serious ones.

A young man from Cha Lan village, Huu Lap commune, where the alcohol poisoning incident that killed three people occurred, shows off a bottle of medicinal wine to a reporter. Photo: Huu Vi

It is time for the authorities to take action to manage the trade and use of wild plants that are believed to have medicinal properties. It is undeniable that some wild plants soaked in wine can actually cure diseases and protect health. However, the lack of understanding of their true properties is often a major risk.

The recent incident in Huu Lap commune, Ky Son district was a regrettable one when 3 people in a family died after drinking wine soaked from a wild plant that the villagers did not know what kind of plant it was. The person who soaked the medicinal wine passed away, taking with him the secret of the wild plant that was considered the main cause of their deaths.

The propaganda work on using forest plants for medicine and health protection should be paid more attention. It is a pity that we only think about this after heartbreaking events happen.

The fateful drinking party that killed three brothers in Nghe An

(Baonghean.vn) - The bottle of wine soaked with forest plants for about a week, considered a strong and precious wine, so Mr. Moong Van Di and his wife only invited his wife's sister and younger brother to drink. Unexpectedly, that was also the fateful drinking party for the whole family.