Adulteration or contamination of natural food products is witnessed in numerous daily consuming products and a challenging factor in complete elimination of adulterated foods in the society. The addition of unwanted substances or removal of valuable substance in the actual food product in an abnormal quantity, is termed as food adulteration and this rarely drives to the poison of food. the substances used in adulteration is indicated as food adulterant.
Adulterants with Effects on Health
The adulterants can be detected in both home scale and laboratory method. The food products like grains, pulses, spices, vegetables and fruits, can be able to detect the type of adulterant in home. On the contrast, products like milk, oil can be accurately detected in laboratory. Let’s see some of the adulterants and their effects on health.
Milk and milk products – Adulterants used in milk are water, urea, caustic soda, skimmed milk, while khoya is adulterated with paper, refined oil and skimmed milk powder. The higher level of consumption of this milk is more harmful to health, specifically for small children and often results in stomach disorders. Butter and ghee are adulterated with vanaspati, vegetable oil, starch, results in indigestion.
Tea – Adulterated with processed tea leaves that have been artificially coloured, results in liver disorder.
Coffee – Adulterants are tamarind seed, data seed and chicory seed powder, leads to diarrhoea, stomach disorder, joint pain.
Sugar and Salt – Chalk powder is adulterated in sugar and salt, results in stomach disorder.
Honey – Used adulterants are glucose/sugar syrup, high fructose corn syrup, which leads to stomach disorder.
Vegetables and Fruits – Frequently, fruits and vegetables are employed for adulteration with waxes, coloured with various dyes and substances. Mostly, used adulterant for vegetable is malachite green, a chemical dye, commonly named as carcinogenic. Common adulteration used in fruits and vegetables are oxytocin saccharin, wax, calcium carbide and copper sulphate.
Spices – Soap stone, galbanum colophony resin and foreign resin are used in asafoetida. Papaya seeds, black berries are utilized in black pepper, as they are almost similar in size but tasteless. Red chilli powder is adulterated with brick powder, salt powder, or talc powder and artificial colours like Sudan red. The consumption of adulterated spices, results in dysentery, heart disease and loss of eyesight.
Pulses – Black gram dhal is adulterated with kesari dhal, which results in lathyrism and cancer. Coal tar dye is commonly applied in pulses, that effects on stomach pain, ulcer.
Edible Oil – adulterated with argemone oil, gives the side effects of lose of eyesight and heart disease.
Many mineral oils were added to the food substance, results in paralysis and lead to the brain damage of the baby in the pregnant women.
Zinc substances gives the vomiting sensation and in severe, leads to diarrhoea.
Food colours leads to liver damage.
Follow FMT magazine, for more detailed information of food adulterant.
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