14-year-old boy dies of heart attack after participating in eating challenge

News Express |17th May 2024 | 745
14-year-old boy dies of heart attack after participating in eating challenge




The chief medical examiners office in Massachusetts has determined that a teenager who ate a tortilla chip containing a high concentration of a chemical compound found in chili peppers, died of a heart attack last September.

Harris Wolobah, who had a congenital heart defect, was attempting Paquis ultra-spicy One Chip Challenge when he ingested the tortilla chip seasoned with both the Carolina Reaper pepper and the Naga Viper pepper.

Paqui voluntarily pulled the product, which was packaged in a coffin-shaped box, off shelves following Wolobahs death in September.

The chief medical examiners office on Thursday confirmed to CNN that Wolobah died of cardiopulmonary arrest after eating a food substance with (a) high capsaicin concentration. Capsaicin is the spicy, naturally occurring chemical in chili peppers.

The Carolina Reaper Pepper ranks just under pepper spray on the Scoville scale, which measures the pungency of peppers and chilis.

The Naga Viper is a bit less pungent, coming in at around 1.2 million heat units on the scale. Thats far spicier than a jalapeño pepper, which comes in at about 5,000 heat units.

Paquis One Chip Challenge was intended for adults only, with clear and prominent labeling highlighting that the product was not for children or anyone sensitive to spicy foods or with underlying health conditions, a Paqui spokesperson told CNN Thursday.

We saw increased reports of teens and other individuals not heeding these warnings.¯As a result, while the product adhered to food safety standards, out of an abundance of caution, we worked with retailers to voluntarily remove the product from shelves in September 2023. The spokesperson added that the One Chip Challenge has been discontinued.

The companys website says it will reimburse consumers for 2023 Paqui Carolina Reaper + Naga Viper Pepper One Chip Challenge bags which havent been eaten. (CNN, excluding headline)

In the photo illustration above, a Panera Bread mango yuzu citrus charged lemonade is displayed at a Panera Bread restaurant on November 01, 2023 in Novato, California. Missouri based Panera Bread announced plans to lay off 17 percent of its 1800 corporate staff as the company streamlines its operations ahead of an initial public offering. (Photo illustration by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

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