DOH mulling health regulations after ‘mukbang’ vlogger’s death

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health (DOH) said on Friday that it may look into possible regulations to mitigate the health risks associated with eating excessive amounts of food, such as those seen in “mukbang” videos.

This pronouncement was in relation to the death of Filipino “mukbang” vlogger Dongz Apatan who suffered from a stroke leading to his death last month.

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“Mukbang” refers to videos featuring a person or host consuming large quantities of food.

“Nais malaman ng DOH kung ang pagpanaw ng ating kababayan na vlogger ay siya ngang dahil sa pag-mukbang. May paraang medikal para gawin ito,” said DOH Assistant Secretary Albert Domingo in a Viber message to INQUIRER.net.

(The DOH wants to know if the death of the vlogger was indeed due to mukbang. There is a medical way to determine this.)

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“Sakaling makitaan ng koneksyon, titignan ng DOH kung anong regulasyon ang pwedeng gawin para maiwasan ang umano’y panganib sa kalusugan,” he added.

(In case a connection is found, the DOH will look into what regulations can be implemented to avoid the alleged health risk.)

In the meantime, Domingo advised the public to eat in moderation and avoid overeating.