The men, who had been cultivating cannabis for personal use, developed a condition called histoplasmosis after breathing in spores of a harmful fungus from their plant food
Two blokes who used bat poo to grow cannabis have died from a rare fungal lung infection from their fertiliser.
The New York pair, who had been cultivating their own vegetation for personal use, developed a condition called histoplasmosis after breathing in spores of a harmful fungus from their plant feed, otherwise known as guano. One of the gents, who was 59 years old, had purchased some online to use as fertilizer for his drug horticulture. The other man, 64, aimed to use guano from his attic to fertilise his cannabis plants, which he found after a significant bat problem.
The news comes as a British pair were found dead in a Bangkok hotel room after consuming what was believed to have been cocaine, but turned out to be a cocktail of drugs.
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It also follows on from cops’ attempt to reunite £1.7million worth of cocaine found washed up on a beach with its owner.
The men developed an array of symptoms from their infections including fever, chronic cough, extensive weight loss, blood poisoning and respiratory failure. According to a report published in the Open Forum Infectious Diseases journal both men died from their illnesses, despite being hospitalised and treated with antifungal drugs.
The doctors who treated them stated the deaths should be a cautionary tale about the risks of using bat guano as fertiliser, particularly for those growing cannabis.
“Given the recent legalization and an expected increase in home cultivation of cannabis, along with the promotion of bat guano for this purpose, it is important to raise public awareness about the potential risk of using bat guano as fertilizer,” the case report authors wrote.
The authors added they found numerous articles calling bat guano a “natural superfood” for cannabis plants due to its high concentration of nitrogen and phosphorus.
These recent deadly cases also “emphasize the need for protective measures, such as wearing masks when handling it,” the authors added.
Histoplasmosis is a kind of pneumonia that happens when you inhale spores from the fungus H. capsulatum, which is present in soil and the droppings of birds and bats. Once in the lungs, these spores change into yeast and can move to other parts of the body through the blood. The disease, however, does not spread between people or from people to pets.
Only around 1% of people who come into contact with H. capsulatum show symptoms. If symptoms do appear, they typically happen between three and 17 days after exposure and can include fever, chills, muscle pain and chest discomfort.
Individuals with a history of lung disease or weakened immune systems are at a higher risk of developing serious cases of histoplasmosis.
The two from Rochester are said to have had other existing diseases when they caught histoplasmosis, which may have worsened their infections.