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After consuming oranges covered with pepper and cinnamon – recommended by an influencer for their so-called digestive properties on TikTok – a woman, treated in the emergency room, suffered from lesions for months. Explanations.
We know: not all advice should be followed on the TikTok network. However, some Internet users continue to give too much credit to influencers… at their own risk. Latest incident: A woman ended up in the emergency room after eating spiced oranges to relieve her constipation.
Oranges covered with cinnamon and cayenne pepper
That’s who made the video.
Famous for her low-sugar recipes, especially for people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), influencer Bethany, known as @lilsipper , also provides health advice. She recently shared a tip to combat constipation… based on oranges, cinnamon and cayenne pepper.
The young woman claims that this miracle anti-constipation recipe would work.in less than five minutes“.
“Every time I share this I get messages thanking me,” Bethany said. “It works about 95% of the time. So if you need a little boost, try this constipation tip and wait five minutes. If you’ve tried it before, let me know how it went. We’re all human and we do the same things – but sometimes we need Mother Nature to literally help us. It’s a cheap, effective tip that works quickly,” she says.
The problem ? If most Internet users seemed won over by this rather surprising health tip (the oranges had to be consumed entirely, with the skin), some warned that they were experiencing unpleasant side effects.
And for good reason: spices like pepper, ginger, paprika or even cayenne pepper (one of the strongest spices) can cause serious intestinal damage. A woman recounts her painful experience on this subject:
“One day, I came across one of her videos, in which she explained how you could improve your digestion by coating an orange with cinnamon and cayenne pepper (…)“, declared one Internet user. “I thought it was a good thing for my body, and that it would thank me later. I was all wrong.”
“I ended up so sick I had to go to the hospital. When the doctor asked me if I had eaten anything in the last 24 hours, I informed him that I had coated an orange with cinnamon and cayenne pepper and then eaten it with the skin“The doctor then questions the young woman about her motivations. To which she responds.”I saw someone do it online.”
The price to pay for following this digestive “trend”? The woman suffered a burn to her esophagus and suffered for months.
Beware of false health advice on social networks!
If this event is dramatic, it is not isolated according to Dr. Will Bulsiewicz, gastroenterologist, interviewed by the media BuzzFeed.
On the networks, “There is an overwhelming amount of information out there. The algorithm is a black box that delivers content to us based on the biases/criteria it has identified in us, so everyone seems to be an expert., he confided. “All of these things make it extremely difficult to separate fact from fiction.”.
Your doctor and pharmacist remain the preferred contacts to answer your health questions. To inform yourself, turn to reliable sources which display an author, a date and whose publications are validated by a health professional.
On this subject, Dr Gérald Kierzek reminded us of some rules of caution when watching online health videos:
- Look who’s speaking: it is not because it is a health professional who makes a video that what he says is necessarily true;
- Check for conflicts of interest: is there a hidden ad does the person have something to sell?
- Trust labels like Youtube Healthwhich guarantees verified information.
Youtube Doctissimo, a reliable site for health information
You can also find out about the channel Youtube Doctissimo like 1.58 million subscribers. In addition to our site whose content is validated by health experts, our Youtube channel has now been labeled Youtube Health since November 17, a certification label for verified editorial content, certified by a team of journalists and expert doctors.
How to know? A banner under each video now informs you of the seriousness of the content and the collaboration of a member registered with the RPPS, a shared directory of professionals working in the health system. Like the compass in our logo, Doctissimo strives to serve as a benchmark for your health.
Slide: Misconceptions about constipation