Japanese Cartoon Pulled by Video Chain, TV Network
A TV network canceled broadcasts of a popular, action-packed cartoon show Wednesday from its 30 stations and a rental chain yanked video versions from its 940 stores because of brilliantly flashing scenes blamed for causing convulsions, spasms or nausea in hundreds of children.
Many of the children were rushed to hospitals Tuesday night after watching the TV Tokyo program “Pokemon,” which means “pocket monsters.” By Wednesday, the number of afflicted children climbed to more than 700 after others watched videotaped versions of the show. About 200 remain hospitalized.
Dr. Philip Sheridan of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke in Bethesda, Md., said the children’s reactions could have two different causes.
Some children may have started to hyperventilate from the excitement and the flashing lights, he said. That can cause dizziness, nausea and fainting. In other children, the flashing lights might have caused seizures by disrupting the natural pacemakers that regulate patterns of activity in the brain’s circuits, he said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
