Kidney doctors nationwide have received health complaints from 95 people who took Kobayashi Pharmaceutical’s beni kōji red yeast rice supplements, the health ministry said Tuesday.

The 95 individuals were mostly between the ages of 40 and 69, with nearly half of them in their 50s. About 70% of them were women.

Many complained of dullness and loss of appetite, as well as urine and kidney problems. Some also complained of stomach problems and weight loss.

For 75% of the 95 people, symptoms eased after they stopped taking the pills. But the rest required treatment, such as prescriptions for steroids. Three of them needed dialysis, the ministry said.

Most of them showed symptoms of Fanconi syndrome, a disorder of the kidney tubes, through which certain substances that are normally absorbed by the body are released into the urine, said Masaomi Nangaku, chairman of the Japanese Society of Nephrology.

Nangaku added that there is no need for excessive alarm as most people tend to recover after they stop taking the supplements.

“But considering that we have seen kidney damage of this magnitude and since there are people who are experiencing kidney disorders without symptoms, people who feel ill or anxious after taking them should go to the hospital immediately and get their kidney functions tested,” he added.

More than two weeks have passed since Kobayashi Pharmaceutical announced recalls of its three products containing beni kōji. The dietary supplements had been advertised as being able to lower cholesterol, blood pressure and visceral fat.

The health ministry and the National Institute of Health Sciences are currently investigating what toxic substances were contained in the pills. While they have announced that puberulic acid, a chemical compound made by blue mold, was detected, they have yet to conclude if the compound was the cause of the kidney problems.

So far, five people have died, 212 people have been hospitalized and 1,224 others have sought medical treatment after taking beni koji supplements, according to the ministry.

Of the five who died, three had underlying conditions, the ministry said. One had prostate cancer, one had malignant lymphoma, which is a type of blood cancer, and one had high blood pressure, hyperlipidemia and rheumatism. No information was available on the other two.

Kobayashi Pharmaceutical has received a total of 53,000 inquiries from consumers of its beni kōji products through Sunday.