Three women have died after consuming a Christmas cake in Brazil, with arsenic detected in the blood of one of the victims, according to a police chief. The highly toxic substance was also found in the blood tests of a 10-year-old boy and the woman who baked the cake, both of whom remain hospitalized.
The incident occurred in Torres, located in the southern Rio Grande do Sul state, during a family gathering on Monday afternoon. Five members of the family fell ill after eating the cake. Authorities have sent the cake for analysis and discovered several expired food items during a search of the baker’s residence. It’s currently unclear whether the poisoning was intentional, with test results from the cake expected by next week.
On Friday, police requested the exhumation of the body of the woman’s late husband, who died in September from food poisoning but was previously declared to have died of natural causes. At this time, she is not considered a suspect in either case, and investigations are ongoing.
Of the seven individuals at the Christmas celebration, six consumed the cake, including the baker, who is believed to have eaten two slices and tested positive for the highest arsenic levels. Police Chief Marcos Vinicius Veloso noted that some family members reported a “peppery” taste in the cake before experiencing symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhea.
Five family members sought medical attention at Nossa Senhora dos Navegantes Hospital at approximately 1:00 a.m. local time (4:00 GMT) on Tuesday. Hours later, two sisters, identified as 58-year-old Maida Berenice Flores da Silva and 43-year-old Tatiana Denize Silva dos Santos, died of cardiac arrest. A third victim, 65-year-old Neuza Denize Silva dos Anjos, who showed traces of arsenic, died later in the evening from “shock after food poisoning.”
What is Arsenic?
Arsenic is a naturally occurring metallic element. Its inorganic form is highly toxic and classified as a category one carcinogen by the EU, indicating that it is known to cause cancer in humans. The World Health Organization (WHO) states that exposure to elevated levels of inorganic arsenic can occur through drinking contaminated water, food preparation, irrigation, industrial processes, and tobacco use.
Although arsenic exists in soil, the amounts that typically enter food are usually too low to be concerning. It is also used in some pesticides and pharmaceuticals, although this is limited.
Credit: BBC News
