Yakult "Sorry for stirring up water... Did not maliciously intend to transmit STD"

"Hospital Test Results: Gardnerella and Ureaplasma Positive, Herpes Types 1 and 2 Negative"

YouTuber 'Yakkureuteu' / Photo by YouTube capture

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lim Juhyung] YouTuber Yakkurt (real name Park Seungjong), who has been embroiled in a privacy controversy, has expressed an apology. However, he clarified that he did not maliciously transmit sexually transmitted diseases to the victims.

On the 4th, Yakkurt posted on the community board of his YouTube channel, saying, "I apologize for causing controversy due to my private life and disappointing my subscribers greatly," and added, "The parties involved are women around my age, and we got to know each other through exchanging supportive messages on personal social network services (SNS) and consultations at the pharmacy."

He continued, "While I had good feelings exchanging messages with them, our lifestyles and personalities did not match, so the relationship did not develop into a deep romantic one."

He further explained, "They underwent STD tests after our relationship and posted that herpes and ureaplasma were detected, which they would have to live with for life," adding, "Embarrassingly, I had never undergone an STD test before this incident. To accurately determine my STD status, I visited a hospital and was tested, resulting in positive for Gardnerella and Ureaplasma, and negative for herpes types 1 and 2."

Yakkurt stated, "As a pharmacist, it was my fault and mistake not to be vigilant and get tested regularly, to be careless about contraception, and to dismiss the women's shocked reactions as trivial," but emphasized, "There was no intentional or malicious attempt to transmit STDs nor any forced sexual relations."

Allegations that Yakkurt had forced sexual relations without using contraceptives surfaced on the 24th of last month. On that day, a post titled "Exposing pharmacist YouTuber OOOO" was uploaded on an online community.

The author claimed, "Last July, while exchanging Instagram DMs with that person (Yakkurt), he asked to meet me. After coming to my house, he ignored my refusal to have relations without contraceptives and just proceeded."

YouTube channel 'Yakurt' / Photo by Asia Economy DB

They added, "We were not dating, but he had sexual relations with me once a week," and "I thought if I tried, the relationship might change, so I kept seeing him."

However, the author said they heard from Yakkurt that "I think I have herpes." Later, the author also tested positive for herpes type 2, which is transmitted through sexual contact.

The author said they grew distant from Yakkurt afterward, but he came back and had sexual relations with them again.

The author lamented, "Knowing he already had an STD, he continued relations without any safety measures and did not inform me in advance, avoided me after transmitting the disease, and when he came back, he treated me merely as a tool for sex, using me only for his pleasure. This emotional pain is even more hurtful than the physical damage."

They added, "I hope he feels at least some shame. If he were truly a pharmacist who cared about women's health and people's health, I hope he lives with some sense of shame."

Meanwhile, Yakkurt is the operator of a YouTube channel launched in November 2018, known for delivering lifestyle habits, supplements, and health information to the public. He has about 240,000 subscribers.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.