Chinese medicine kills one child, makes 151 sick

BEIJING - Herbal medicine prescribed to primary schoolchildren in southwest China to ward of chickenpox killed one and made 151 sick says Xinhua news agency.

The accident happened in Kunming, capital of Yunnan province, on Wednesday when more than 200 children took a homemade herbal concoction, Xinhua said.

About 150 children suffered diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting after taking the medicine, a mixture of 15 types of traditional herbs, it said.

"The investigation team ... confirmed that each ingredient of the recipe was safe and measured up to the state's medical standards," Xinhua said, blaming the ill effects on a reaction to a faulty combination of the herbs.

The 151 children had all recovered and left hospital by Monday.

- REUTERS