The ancient Korean rice wine and the fermented feces of young children is
believed to cure all medicinal illness. it make cuts and bruises disappear,
heal broken bones and cure epilepsy.
The rice wine is made by rapidly fermenting water
with children's feces in it.
After a day,
boiled rice and yeast is mixed together. The concoction is kept at between 30 and 37
degrees Celsius for a week and is strained before it is ready to drink.
Ttongsul has been in decline since
the last half century, a few traditionalists have managed to keep the cultural
beverage alive.
Reporters from VICE have tracked
down Dr. Lee Chang Soo, a traditional Korean medicine doctor who claims to be
one of the few people in Korea who knows how to make the bizarre beverage.
Dr Lee Chang Soo said the use of the special
ingredient for medicinal purposes can
be traced back centuries in Korea when Ancient Koreans claimed it could cure a
host of problems.
Animal feces were also used in medicine, from bat droppings
to treat alcoholism to chicken feces to treat stomach problems. However, the
ingredient is no longer widely used in Eastern medicine.
Dr Soo told VICE Japan correspondent Yuka Uchida: 'I feel sad that human feces are no longer used as traditional medicine.'
The rice wine is nine per cent alcohol and includes
feces from children aged around six years-old, which Dr Soo claims does not
smell and is 'pure'.
He also said
the wine can prevent pain and while people might be hospitalised for around 20
days following a nasty fall, the wine could heal the person in half the time.
Dr Soo warned the journalist the wine 'might taste
a little sour' but when she struggled to drink it, he said the problem was all
in her head.
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