Japan tutoring firm apologizes over wrongly stating Minamata disease is 'hereditary'
Daigo Kusunose, executive officer at the Tokyo-based Trygroup Inc., and its Kyushu regional headquarters chief Motohiro Ito, visited Minamata city hall. Kusunose stated, "We deeply apologize for the great inconvenience and concern caused to everyone in Minamata and all those affected by Minamata disease due to the teaching material we created."
Mayor Takaoka responded, "We believed we were disseminating correct information, so honestly, I am disappointed," adding, "How Trygroup responds from now on is important for both citizens and those who have suffered from the disease."
The error appeared in the "Try IT" video lesson service's social studies material for junior high school students. It described cases in which methylmercury consumed by pregnant mothers was passed through the placenta to the fetus, resulting in the children developing Minamata disease, but it incorrectly used the term "hereditary." The material was released via an app in 2015 and has been available on YouTube since 2016. Until it was taken down in May of this year, it had been viewed more than 70,000 times.
On the afternoon of June 25, the company executives were also to meet with the "Minamata disease victims and supporters liaison council," made up of Minamata disease patients and victim groups, as well as the "Minamata discrimination and prejudice study group," formed in response to issues such as incorrect descriptions.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Times
2 days ago
- Japan Times
Recent deaths of Japanese boxers underline importance of emergency action plans
Boxing, a sport many see as too dangerous, is once again grappling with questions of safety and protocol after two Japanese boxers in their 20s died within a day of each other from fatal brain injuries suffered during separate fights on the same night. Shigetoshi Kotari died on Aug. 8 and Hiromasa Urakawa on Aug. 9 after competing in different fights on the same card at Tokyo's iconic Korakuen Hall on Aug. 2. Both boxers underwent surgery for subdural hematomas — a condition in which blood collects between the skull and the brain. Kotari lost consciousness in his dressing room after going 12 rounds against Yamato Hata in a bout for the Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) super featherweight title that ended in a draw. Urakawa, a lightweight who appeared on the undercard in an 8-rounder against Yoji Saito, collapsed in the ring after a technical knockout loss in the final round. Four Japanese pro boxers, including Kotari and Urakawa, have undergone craniotomies in the past two years, with three of the cases resulting in death. In February 2024, Kazuki Anaguchi died after sustaining a brain injury in a December fight. The only survivor, former International Boxing Federation minimumweight champion Ginjiro Shigeoka, remains in a coma following his May 24 bout with Pedro Taduran. Serious injuries and deaths in the ring are called ringuka (literally, ring crisis) in Japanese. Since the Japan Boxing Commission (JBC) was established in 1952, about 40 boxers have died as a direct result of injuries sustained in the ring, according to the Asahi Shimbun. Though boxing fatalities are statistically rare, they highlight the inherent risks of the sport. Shunji Asamoto, a neurosurgeon and a doctor with the JBC since 2018, says that most boxing deaths occur after a single powerful punch to the head or a series of punches in quick succession, rather than repeated blows over a long period of time, which is linked to impaired brain function or chronic neurological issues. 'Acute subdural hematoma is the most common cause of boxing fatalities and unfortunately, there is no way for a boxer to have zero risk of acute subdural hematoma,' Asamoto said. 'Due to the nature of the sport, blows to the head are unavoidable, and these can potentially cause acute subdural hematoma. While CT scans and MRIs are useful for assessing brain health, they don't reliably predict the possibility of an acute subdural hematoma developing in the future.' Kotari and Urakawa's deaths made headlines around the world, with major media outlets such as CNN and BBC reporting on Japanese boxing's double tragedy. The World Boxing Organization was among those who paid tribute to the late boxers on social media. Brian Sutterer, a U.S.-based physiatrist and YouTuber with 826,000 subscribers, provided his perspective on how to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future in a video released on Monday. In the video, Sutterer reads the English translation of an X post by Kotari's older brother. The brother questioned the venue's emergency protocol, which he said instructs the on-site doctor to first notify a venue staff member, who then contacts 119. He also expressed anger over what he said was a long wait for an ambulance (which he claimed was a little over 40 minutes) and that his brother had to be carried down five flights of stairs because the stretcher wouldn't fit in the elevator. 'So it sounds, at least from reading his brother's presentation of what happened here, that the way to look for improvements in this unfortunate case is that emergency action plan,' Sutterer said. 'It's 'what can we do to improve how quickly emergency personnel can get to the venue?'' JBC Secretary-General Tsuyoshi Yasukochi told reporters on Sunday he believes there were no errors in the way the medical emergency was handled. 'However, we must investigate whether we truly did everything possible,' he added. 'Additionally, we are researching the medical response measures implemented by commissions in places like Nevada and New York. If there are elements that can be introduced in Japan, we would like to adopt them proactively.' In response, the JBC announced all future OPBF and WBO Asia Pacific title fights in Japan will be reduced from 12 to 10 rounds. Some boxers take various measures to shed excess grams — especially right before weigh-ins — in order to make weight ahead of fights. This rapid weight loss can lead to dehydration, which the World Boxing Association says makes the brain more susceptible to bleeding. Japanese boxing officials said they would introduce urine tests to measure hydration, enforce stricter rules on weight loss to prevent dehydration and improve medical coverage at bouts following the deaths of the two fighters last week. Under the new rules, ambulances will also be required on site, even for non-world championship bouts — already a requirement of the Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports, which governs U.S. boxing commissions. They will partner with hospitals that are equipped to perform emergency surgery for head and other injuries. Asamoto, who has served as a ringside physician 'too many times to count,' thinks simply having an ambulance on standby isn't enough. He, like Sutterer, says an emergency action plan (EAP) must be priority No. 1 in boxing. 'An EAP is a preestablished sequence of actions, covering everything from initial ringside response when a fighter is in critical condition, to transportation by ambulance and the start of specialized treatment at the receiving hospital,' he said. 'Without this plan, crucial decisions — such as which hospital to contact, how to contact them and who will accompany the patient — can be delayed in an emergency. In cases of acute subdural hematoma, emergency surgery is highly likely to be required. To increase a fighter's chances of survival, it's critical to minimize wasted time at every stage.' But Asamoto admits that, generally speaking, the primary challenge in an emergency in Japan is not getting an ambulance to the scene, but finding a hospital that can accept the patient. This is due to factors such as hospital capacity, bed availability and specialized treatment needs, which can lead to delays in providing necessary care. 'Hospitals treat a wide variety of patients,' he said. 'Therefore, it is practically impossible for a hospital to refuse other emergency cases or to reserve an operating room solely for a boxing match — that is, to have an anesthesiologist, neurosurgeon and nursing staff on standby.' 'Finally, acute subdural hematoma is an extremely dangerous condition that is often difficult to treat successfully even with rapid intervention, and it carries a high risk of severe long-term complications. Among head injuries, acute subdural hematoma is considered one of the most serious and troublesome conditions.'
Japan Today
5 days ago
- Japan Today
Dangerous dreams: Inside internet's 'sleepmaxxing' craze
The trend of 'sleepmaxxing,' featuring mouth taping, eye masks and other bedroom practices with unproven health effects, is being promoted on social media by online influencers By Caleigh Keating, Anuj Chopra and Rachel Blundy From mouth taping to rope-assisted neck swinging, a viral social media trend is promoting extreme bedtime routines that claim to deliver perfect sleep -- despite scant medical evidence and potential safety risks. Influencers on platforms including TikTok and X are fueling a growing wellness obsession popularly known as "sleepmaxxing," a catch-all term for activities and products aimed at optimizing sleep quality. The explosive rise of the trend -- generating tens of millions of posts -- underscores social media's power to legitimize unproven health practices, particularly as tech platforms scale back content moderation. One so-called insomnia cure involves people hanging by their necks with ropes or belts and swinging their bodies in the air. "Those who try it claim their sleep problems have significantly improved," said one clip on X that racked up more than 11 million views. Experts have raised alarm about the trick, following a Chinese state broadcaster's report that attributed at least one fatality in China last year to a similar "neck hanging" routine. Such sleepmaxxing techniques are "ridiculous, potentially harmful, and evidence-free," Timothy Caulfield, a misinformation expert from the University of Alberta in Canada, told AFP. "It is a good example of how social media can normalize the absurd." Another popular practice is taping of the mouth for sleep, promoted as a way to encourage nasal breathing. Influencers claim it offers broad benefits, from better sleep and improved oral health to reduced snoring. But a report from George Washington University found that most of these claims were not supported by medical research. Experts have also warned the practice could be dangerous, particularly for those suffering from sleep apnea, a condition that disrupts breathing during sleep. Other unfounded tricks touted by sleepmaxxing influencers include wearing blue- or red-tinted glasses, using weighted blankets, and eating two kiwis just before bed. "My concern with the 'sleepmaxxing' trend -- particularly as it's presented on platforms like TikTok -- is that much of the advice being shared can be actively unhelpful, even damaging, for people struggling with real sleep issues," Kathryn Pinkham, a Britain-based insomnia specialist, told AFP. "While some of these tips might be harmless for people who generally sleep well, they can increase pressure and anxiety for those dealing with chronic insomnia or other persistent sleep problems." While sound and sufficient sleep is considered a cornerstone of good health, experts warn that the trend may be contributing to orthosomnia, an obsessive preoccupation with achieving perfect sleep. "The pressure to get perfect sleep is embedded in the sleepmaxxing culture," said Eric Zhou of Harvard Medical School. "While prioritizing restful sleep is commendable, setting perfection as your goal is problematic. Even good sleepers vary from night to night." Pinkham added that poor sleep was often fuelled by the "anxiety to fix it," a fact largely unacknowledged by sleepmaxxing influencers. "The more we try to control sleep with hacks or rigid routines, the more vigilant and stressed we become -- paradoxically making sleep harder," Pinkham said. Many sleepmaxxing posts focus on enhancing physical appearance rather than improving health, reflecting an overlap with "looksmaxxing" –- another online trend that encourages unproven and sometimes dangerous techniques to boost sexual appeal. Some sleepmaxxing influencers have sought to profit from the trend's growing popularity, promoting products such as mouth tapes, sleep-enhancing drink powders, and "sleepmax gummies" containing melatonin. That may be in violation of legal norms in some countries like Britain, where melatonin is available only as a prescription drug. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine has recommended against using melatonin to treat insomnia in adults, citing inconsistent medical evidence regarding its effectiveness. Some medical experts also caution about the impact of the placebo effect on insomnia patients using sleep medication -- when people report real improvement after taking a fake or nonexistent treatment because of their beliefs. "Many of these tips come from non-experts and aren't grounded in clinical evidence," said Pinkham. "For people with genuine sleep issues, this kind of advice often adds pressure rather than relief." © 2025 AFP
Japan Times
5 days ago
- Japan Times
Heat waves pose serious health risks for pregnant women, study shows
Japan's recent record-breaking heat poses health risks other than heatstroke, a study by the Institute of Science Tokyo shows. The team found that the risk of serious complications for pregnant women increases the day after a heat wave. Previous studies also reported worsening symptoms of diabetes and respiratory illnesses, making precautions against these related health risks even more important. Takeo Fujiwara, a professor at the university, and his team analyzed the link between the wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) heat stress index and about 6,900 cases reported from 11 regions in Japan in 2011-2020 of placental abruption, in which part of the placenta separates from the uterus before childbirth. The risk of developing placental abruption was 1.2 times higher the day after a particularly high WBGT day. The risk increased 1.5 times among those with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and 1.4 times among those with fetal growth restriction. A previous study of people with diabetes found that the risk of hospitalization for hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia rose by over 1.6 times on days with an average temperature of 29 degrees Celsius compared to days with an average of 22 C. Dehydration is said to be the cause of the increased risks, with attention required especially for patients using insulin. Health risks stemming from torrid temperatures also extend to children. According to another study, exposure to extreme heat led to a 1.2 times increase in the risk of hospitalization for asthma, with the risk rising 1.3 times for those the age of 14 or younger. Based on climate change and demographics, the risk of being hospitalized for heat-related asthma could increase by up to 4.1 times in the 2090s, according to the study. As basic measures to cope with the heat, Japan's health ministry is calling on people to use air conditioners, monitor WBGT levels, stay hydrated and avoid direct sunlight.
