Lychee is a fruit with high nutritional value and is a delicious fruit that is loved by our people in the summer. According to the book Nam Duoc Than Dieu by Tue Tinh, lychee is called Le Chi, has a sweet taste, cold properties, is non-toxic, harmonizes the air, clears the mind, treats headaches, and is fibrous. In terms of nutrition, 100g of lychee pulp contains about 15g of sugar, 36mg of vitamin C (equivalent to the amount of vitamin C in an orange), and also contains a number of other vitamins such as B1, B2, B6, niacin, folate and important minerals such as magnesium (10mg), potassium (171mg), copper (148mg), selenium (0.6mg).

In June 2017, a cluster of cases occurred in Cao Bang, causing 4 children to be hospitalized, of which 3 died, suspected of being due to encephalitis and suspected to be related to eating green lychees in their gardens. The Ministry of Health later concluded that the cause of death was encephalitis - meningitis and was not related to eating lychees.

However, in India, the most recent retrospective study by scientists published in the Lancet (April 2017) showed that eating lychee on an empty stomach, combined with fasting the night before, is associated with acute neurological diseases and a high mortality rate. Specifically, in Muzaffarpur - the largest lychee growing region in India - there are annual outbreaks of acute neurological diseases with a high mortality rate in children. The above study on 390 patients (of whom 122 died) detected hypoglycin A and methylencyclopropyl glycine (MCPG) in the urine of the patients. Tests also showed that the content of these substances in green lychee was 2-3 times higher than in ripe lychee. Hypoglycin A and MCPG are two substances that cause hypoglycemia and encephalopathy in experimental animals, due to inhibiting the conversion of fatty acids into glucose. 

Although there has been no published research on the content of hypoglycin A and MCPG in lychee in Vietnam, according to published research in the world, to ensure safety during the current lychee season, consumers, especially people in lychee growing areas, need to pay attention to the following points:

+ Absolutely do not eat green lychee, unripe lychee, and do not eat lychee when hungry.

+ Make sure to eat enough dinner to avoid hypoglycemia.

+ People in lychee growing areas need to have glucose available to prevent hypoglycemia if poisoning from eating lychee is suspected.