Chinese Teenager With Bubble Tea Addiction Falls Into Coma

An 18-year-old Chinese girl fell into a diabetic coma for five days due to her bubble tea addiction. The teenager’s sugar level had spiked 25 times higher than normal due to her habit of consuming bubble tea, at least twice daily for a whole month.

She was rushed to Shanghai’s Ruijin Hospital on May 2 after she fell into a coma and weighed 125 kg. According to the emergency department, the girl fell into a diabetic coma due to hyperglycemia- with a dangerously high level of blood sugar levels.

The teenager’s family members found her unconscious after she complained of experienced nausea, frequent urination, and excess thirst the previous week. She had experienced all signs of related diabetic ketoacidosis.

Diabetic Ketoacidosis:

It is a serious complication of type 1 diabetes and a less common one of type 2 diabetes. It occurs when a person’s blood sugar levels are extremely elevated and acidic substances called ketones build up to dangerous levels in the body.

The girl’s mother revealed that she had spent nearly $20 daily on bubble tea and soft drinks and had been addicted to sugary drinks.

She was put on a ventilator and hemodialysis for five days after which she woke up from her coma.

Her condition slowly improved and was soon considered stable. She was then transferred to Nanxiang Hospital for a follow-up. And in the next one month, the teenager managed to lose 35 kgs and has vowed to never drink bubble tea again.

Bubble tea

A single cup of bubble tea contains around 370 calories. The bubble or ‘boba’ alone contains 150 calories. Although consuming the beverage will not cause diabetes directly, the high sugar content can pose a high risk of diabetes, immunity, tooth decay, and accelerated aging.

The tea comes in several flavors and is usually filled with a large spoonful of tapioca balls- ‘boba’ or pearls. These chewy pearls are made from the cassava plant and are used as a thickening agent.

Several other teenagers have been hospitalized due to similar incidents. A 13-year-old boy who had failed to digest tapioca pearls in bubble tea had to undergo emergency surgery to get them removed.

And last year, another 14-year-old girl who was addicted to bubble tea was hospitalized after suffering from agonizing abdominal pain.