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The Mainichi
4 days ago
- Health
- The Mainichi
Japan's Niigata governor criticizes incorrect 'hereditary' description of Minamata disease
NIIGATA -- Niigata Gov. Hideyo Hanazumi expressed his displeasure over an incorrect description of Minamata disease mercury poisoning in an online teaching material by a major home tutoring operator, which stated, "The terrifying fact about Minamata disease is that it's hereditary." Hanazumi called the account in the material published by Trygroup Inc. "a clear mistake and extremely regrettable" during a regular news conference May 28. Although the company has acknowledged the error and taken down the material, the prefectural government plans to address the issue while working with Kumamoto Prefecture, home to the first reported case of the industrial pollution-derived disease and where patients and victims are located. The teaching material, aimed at junior high school students, described cases in which children developed Minamata disease at birth after being affected through their mother's placenta as "hereditary." On May 14, the Ministry of the Environment pointed out the error to the company, and the material was removed May 22. Hanazumi called the mistake "a case that must not happen" and stated that he would closely monitor the Environment Ministry's response, including reports on how the error occurred and measures to prevent a recurrence. Touching on that this year marks the 60th anniversary of the official recognition of Niigata Minamata disease, the governor added, "It is important to convey the facts, history and lessons of Minamata disease. Renewed efforts are necessary." (Japanese original by Noriaki Kinoshita, Niigata Bureau)
Japan Today
25-05-2025
- Health
- Japan Today
Major Japan tutoring firm apoloigizes for false claim on Minamata disease
A major Japanese tutoring company has recently apologized for inaccurately describing the Minamata mercury-poisoning disease as hereditary in its online study material, a description that drew strong public criticism. The false claim appeared in a video lesson for junior high school students from the firm's "Try IT" online service, which explained cases of infants developing the disease via mercury exposure through the placenta but wrongly called the condition "inherited." Trygroup Inc, the operator of the nationwide home tutoring service Try, said in a statement available on its website Sunday, "We apologize for the inaccurate phrasing and have corrected it," adding the lesson video has already been taken offline. Following the revelation of the misinformation, a group comprising patients and victims of Minamata disease, as well as the Environment Ministry, urged the company to make corrections. Minamata disease is a neurological disorder caused by mercury poisoning. It affected thousands of people who unknowingly consumed seafood contaminated with mercury in areas around Minamata Bay in Kumamoto Prefecture on the southwestern main island of Kyushu. In 1968, the Japanese government recognized that mercury in wastewater from a local chemical plant was responsible for the illness. © KYODO
