A 60-year-old woman went to hospital after eating a large amount of wasabi by mistake. She was at a wedding reception and ate a teaspoon of wasabi. She thought it was an avocado dip. Her taste buds and nose were shocked by the spices. She felt pressure in her chest and her arms tingled. She went to hospital and doctors diagnosed her with "broken-heart syndrome". This has symptoms that are similar to a heart attack.
Doctors said the woman had takotsubo cardiomyopathy - also called "broken-heart syndrome". The heart weakens so that it cannot pump blood properly. It is usually caused by life-changing and shocking events like financial troubles, traffic accidents or bad news. Most patients fully recover within a month. Doctors said: "To the best of our knowledge, this is the first [time it was] triggered by wasabi." They told sushi lovers that wasabi is not dangerous.