The cause of death of singer Miho Nakayama (aged 54) , who was found dead in the bathroom of her Tokyo home on the 6th, was revealed on the 8th. Following the results of the police autopsy, her agency announced that “there was no criminal element, it was an accident that occurred while bathing.” An investigator said, “She drowned while bathing and died.”
In winter, sudden changes in temperature can cause blood pressure to fluctuate, making it even more likely that heat shock, which can lead to heart and vascular diseases, will occur in the bathroom.
No specific factors were given about Nakayama’s case, such as heat shock or whether she had drunk alcohol before bathing, but the announcement that it was an “accident while bathing” has many people thinking about ways to prevent heat shock, and so the bathing method from the popular manga series “Dokaben” has become a hot topic online. In one scene
, the main character Yamada Taro advises people to warm their feet first, then their lower body, to avoid bathing, which is bad for the heart. Various comments were made online, such as “It reminded me of Yamada Taro’s bathing method,” and “I heard that it’s good to pour hot water on parts of the body far from the heart, such as the hands and feet, to get the body used to the hot water, so I’ll warm my feet like Yamada Taro before getting in.”
According to an analysis and survey by the Consumer Affairs Agency, it is estimated that 19,000 people die in bathing accidents nationwide each year. For people over 65, this is about twice as many as those who die in traffic accidents.
Nakayama was found dead in the bathtub at her home in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo on the 6th. She was scheduled to perform in Osaka for the Christmas concert “Miho Nakayama Christmas Concert 2024 in Billboard Live” on that day, but she did not show up at the 9 am meeting place. Suspicious, a member of her agency visited her home and discovered her dead in the bathtub.