Pokémon episode that hospitalised thousands of children explained by expert

Experts have finally found the reason why an infamous Pokémon TV show episode caused thousands of children to become ill.

The Pokémon TV show is arguably one of the most beloved anime cartoons out there. It’s had such an enormous cultural impact and completely changed the course of the franchise, made obvious by the fact that its loveable mascot Pikachu is one of the most widely recognised fictional creatures in existence.

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Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, as we said goodbye to Ash Ketchum, Pikachu and all their friends for good following an emotional finale for the series before a soft reboot.

Now, as we look back on hundreds of episodes, including some unreleased ones, one stands out amongst the rest, the episode titled 'Dennō Senshi Porygon' which was aired one time, and never shown again.

This is reportedly because after watching the episode, hundreds of children ended up in hospital. Symptoms included convulsions, nausea and vomiting, and it apparently effected over 600 kids at the time of the broadcast, though it quickly went up to over 12,000 in the days that followed.

While the reason for the outbreak was unknown, many assumed it was a reaction to the flashing imagery featured in the episode, making it infamous amongst the community - and it is often one of the first things fans think of when they see the Porygon Pokémon.

Now, so many years later, the cause has finally been identified by a study from Radford and Bartholomew. According to the study, while many children were diagnosed with epileptic reactions, others were not, leading to the researchers concluding: “The victims were nearly exclusively school children in early adolescence; and anxiety from dramatic media reports of the first wave of illness reports was evident.”

They went on to say: "Media reports and publicity fuel the hysteria as news of the affliction spreads, planting the idea or concern in the community while reinforcing and validating the veracity of the illness for the initial victims."

So there you have it, thousands of children were hospitalised due to mass hysteria, all because of a Pokémon episode.