Rise In Poisoning Cases Linked To Unregistered Rat Poison Raises Concern

GEORGE TOWN, Feb 26 (Bernama) -- An increase in poisoning cases involving unregistered rat poison has been identified as a serious threat to public health in the country, particularly among children aged one to four.

Asdariah Misnan, a pharmacist from the Drug and Poison Information Service at the National Poison Centre, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) said the centre recorded a significant rise in calls related to rat poison exposure from 2023 to last year, especially those involving illegal or unregistered products containing highly toxic substances.

“In 2023, 42 out of 94 cases involved illegal poison, followed by 61 out of 143 cases in 2024 and 51 out of 118 cases in 2025. Between October and December 2025, 35 poisoning cases were reported, with 18 cases or 51.4 per cent involving illegal, unregistered rat poison.

“More than 40 per cent of the total rat poisoning cases over the three-year period involved unregistered products. Overall, between 60 and 70 per cent of reported cases involved children aged one to four, making them the most vulnerable group at risk of poisoning at home,” she said in a statement today.

She said half of the rat poisoning cases were unintentional, resulting from children ingesting bait mixed with food and placed in open areas within easy reach.

According to Asdariah, the cases involved several unregistered brands such as Smell to Death, Morat, Mao Wang, Hai Zhen Wei, Super Rat Killer, Victory, RTV Rat Poison and Tomrat, as well as products labelled in Chinese without valid registration numbers.

She said most of the products were purchased online through e-commerce platforms, while some were obtained from unlicensed traders at night markets, she said.

“Monitoring also revealed a lack of transparency in the labelling of unregistered products, including reports of active ingredient concentrations higher than those stated on the label, increasing the risk of poisoning even in small amounts.

“More worrying, laboratory tests detected active ingredients different from those declared on product labels or websites, including substances that are more toxic and banned in most countries, such as tetramethylenedisulfotetramine (TETS), sodium monofluoroacetate (SMFA), fluoroacetamide and fluoroacetic acid, which can cause recurrent seizures and death even at low doses,” she said.

In this regard, the National Poison Centre urged coordinated efforts by all parties, including government agencies and sellers, to curb the sale of unregistered rat poison apart from enhancing enforcement.

She said sellers, particularly e-commerce platform operators, are advised to ensure that only vendors licensed with the Pesticides Board of Malaysia (LRMP) are allowed to sell registered pesticides and to display valid registration numbers.

-- BERNAMA