After Rene Craighead, 17, was rushed to the hospital for emergency gallbladder surgery last week, "I knew I had to tell everybody about it," her mother (also named Rene) told WREG. The elder Craighead believes it was her daughter's love of Takis and Hot Cheetos that led to her gallbladder failure.
"She loves them. Every time I go out she says, 'Bring me back some Hot Takis, bring me back some Hot Chips.' I want to make her happy, so I brought them back. She was eating big bags and would take them to school with her," she told the station. Her daughter estimates she was eating about four big bags of the snacks total per week.
According to USA Today, the younger Rene started to feel sick to her stomach after eating some combination of these chips and ultimately had to have her gallbladder removed. Gastroenterologist Dr. Cary Canvender told the station there are several factors that contribute to gallbladder failure, but that eating that many Takis and Hot Cheetos may very well have contributed: "We probably see around 100 kids a month [with similar chip-related stomach issues], easily."
Both Takis' PR and Frito-Lay's (the maker of Cheetos) gave WREG similar statements, assuring customers both snacks were safe to eat but should be enjoyed in moderation. Frito-Lay added the important note that "some consumers may be more sensitive to spicy foods than others and may choose to avoid spicier snacks due to personal preference."
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