KORONADAL CITY, Philippines — Fourteen people, including 13 schoolchildren, were hospitalized after mistakenly eating poisonous tuba-tuba fruits that resemble edible lanzones in Koronadal City, South Cotabato, authorities said Wednesday.
The victims, including 44-year-old Rachel Basiwan, developed painful abdominal spasms after eating ripe tuba-tuba fruits in Barangay Topland on Monday, Oct. 26, according to Rolly Aquino, chief of the South Cotabato Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office.
Barangay officials and local government emergency responders rushed the victims to the South Cotabato Provincial Hospital after their condition worsened.
Doctors treated them for food poisoning and administered intravenous fluids to prevent dehydration and help them recover.
Aquino said all 14 patients had been discharged and were recuperating at home.
“They did not know that tuba-tuba fruits are not edible. Its leaves have medicinal value, but its fruits are not edible,” Aquino said.
The plant, scientifically known as Jatropha curcas, is commonly found in the southern Philippines. Its leaves are traditionally used as wraps for painful joints and body contusions, but its fruits are not safe to eat.
Barangay Topland Chairman Terrence Jay Ehimplar said the Koronadal City government and the office of South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo coordinated assistance for the victims.
Aquino said Tamayo’s office would also provide relief supplies to help the patients while they continue taking medication during their recovery.
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