Brazilian Health Minister Alexandre Padilha on Friday urged residents to avoid drinking alcohol, particularly distilled spirits, amid mounting cases of methanol poisonings, including one confirmed death and dozens of incidents under investigation.
Newsweek has reached out to the Brazilian Health Ministry for comment via email on Saturday.
Why It Matters
The health ministry has identified over 100 suspected cases of methanol poisoning, most of them in São Paulo. One death has been confirmed with 11 other deaths still under investigation, according to the Associated Press.
Methanol is a type of colorless alcohol often used in industrial products like antifreeze, windshield washer fluid, and fuel. Sometimes, methanol is added to cheap or counterfeit alcoholic drinks to boost their alcohol content, which can lead to very dangerous symptoms, ranging from a headache, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, visual problems, and in extreme cases coma or death.
What To Know
In a Saturday X post, Padilha announced that the country has purchased 2,500 treatments of Fomepizole, “an antidote used in cases of methanol poisoning.” The medication has not been available in Brazil and will arrive next week, he added.
On Thursday, he announced the “emergency purchase of 150,000 ampoules of pharmaceutical ethanol to reinforce states and municipalities in the treatment of victims.”
The announcement comes as the health ministry is still investigating 116 suspected cases of methanol poisoning with some people having been hospitalized. Padilha said earlier this week, “As a physician and health minister, I advise everyone to avoid distilled products, especially colorless ones, unless you’re certain of their origin. These are not essential items.”
The AP reported that many Brazilians have been skipping cocktails and other distilled spirits in recent days, opting for beer and wine instead, drinks seen as less likely to be adulterated than mixed beverages made with spirits.
What People Are Saying
Artur Dian, chief of Sao Paulo police, told AP: “We have determined that methanol contaminated counterfeit alcoholic beverages. So we need to understand how…While we know that small amounts do not contaminate and are not capable of causing health damage, we don’t know the exact amount that might remain in a bottle.”
Health Minister Alexandre Padilha wrote in an October 2 X post: “The Government of President @LulaOficial is fully mobilized monitoring the cases of methanol poisoning in the country, and we have created a situation room at @minsaude to ensure even greater agility in monitoring and decision-making.”
Brazilian rapper Hungria, who was hospitalized after potentially drinking infected alcohol, said in Portuguese on his Instagram account: “Tests were carried out to investigate the suspected ingestion of adulterated drink, but we are still waiting for the results for confirmation…We recognize that this moment involves a serious public health issue, so we reinforce that all communication must be made with caution and by qualified professionals.”
Restaurant owner Nikolaos Loukopoulos told AFP: “I’m going to suspend my supply of spirits until my distributors tell me if they’re having a problem.”
What Happens Next?
The police and health ministry are investigating the situation.