Lassa fever: Medical Expert cautions against drinking Garri

Nigerians have been cautioned by the Director of Public Health, Enugu State, Dr Boniface Okolo, against the consumption of soaked garri to avoid contacting Lassa fever.

Boniface who gave the warning during an interview with newsmen, on Saturday, January 18, 2020 in Enugu, said the rats that caused the disease were mostly in contact with Nigerian most popular staple food ‘garri,’ a cassava product.

He said it was necessary to discourage consumption of soaked garri since it did not require boiled water.

“It is better that the cassava flakes called garri is used for ‘eba’, because of the use of hot water.

“We in the state health ministry are waging total war against rodents through sensitisation, that is what we are doing to ensure we do not have victim of Lassa fever in the state.

“We are also sensitising the public to ensure that their fruits and raw vegetables are properly washed if they must be consumed them raw and cook to the appropriate temperature.

“The best practices for food storage should be encouraged to prevent epidemic.

”We should always make sure that we use air-tight clean plastic containers to preserve our foodstuff to avoid lassa fever and other diseases,” he said.