Health ministers have warned residents of South Korea not to mix wasps into their soju.
The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety released a statement cautioning mixing the stinging insect with the Korean spirit.
Some wrongly believe wasp soju relieves high blood pressure and benefits diabetes. Others add centipedes and earthworms to the alcoholic drink to create a supposed health tonic.
Yet authorities warn the bizarre combination could cause people to suffer severe allergic reactions that may lead to life-threatening choking.
Kim Seung-hwan, a researcher at the Food and Drug Safety Ministry, said: ‘It is no more than a rumor going around ordinary people that wasps could help restore health.
‘Isn’t it too obvious that wasps and centipedes aren’t edible?’
Health ministers have warned residents of South Korea not to mix wasps into their soju (stock)
‘Need to warn people before it gets out of control’
Mr Seung-hwan added combining soju with wasps is a long-held tradition that has been made worse by people sharing recipes and selling pre-mixed beverages online.
He said: ‘That’s when we felt a need to warn people of the danger before it gets out of control.’
An illegal wasp-based soju shop in Hwaseong, a city south of Seoul, was uncovered in February, according to a statement released by South Korea’s special judicial police.
South Koreans often mix soju with other ingredients. For example, somac, which is a soju and beer, is a popular local cocktail.
Some believe combining wasps with soju, a Korean spirit, relieves high blood pressure (stock)
Woman dies after bee-sting acupuncture backed by Gwyneth Paltrow
This comes after a case report released last month revealed a 55-year-old woman died after undergoing a bizarre form of acupuncture that involves being stung by bees.
The unnamed patient, from Spain, attended a session of apitherapy every four weeks for more than two years without any allergic reactions.
Yet, she eventually suffered an anaphylactic shock to the venom, which led to her entering a coma and enduring multiple organ failures.
She passed away weeks later in Ramón y Cajal University Hospital in Madrid.
The unidentified clinic that offered the woman the procedure claims the therapy relieves painful muscular contractions and eases stress.
The patient’s death comes after the Hollywood actor Gerard Butler admitted last October that he suffered a life-threatening reaction after being injected with the venom of 23 bees in an attempt to tackle muscular problems.
Actress Gwyneth Paltrow, who has faced backlash for her controversial health advice on her website Goop, has also tried the ancient ‘treatment’.
The Shakespeare in Love star told The New York Times in 2016 the ‘painful’ procedures produces ‘pretty incredible’ results.
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