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Bitter facts about sweets |
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jaihoon |
12/18/02 at 00:06:01 |
Bitter facts about sweets gulfnews.com Children consuming large quantities of sweets could end up with severe brain damage and delayed physical growth coupled with other serious symptoms that might lead to death due to an excessive intake of lead, according to an official health study. The study by the Food and Environment Control Centre (FECC) at the Abu Dhabi Municipality was based on tests of more than 150 samples of chocolate and its findings showed that sweets imported from Lebanon, South Africa and other countries contained alarming levels of lead. The study warned that adults could also suffer from an excessive intake of lead in chocolate and stressed that the only alternative for children is to reduce consumption on grounds that some associated diseases are incurable. Pregnant women with a good appetite for sweets can also pass the lead deposits in their blood to their embryos and this can cause deformities in the infant, premature delivery and below-average weight of the baby. "In children, accumulation of lead in their bodies and blood due to excessive consumption of chocolate can lead to brain damage or paralysis, convulsions, general weakness, nervous disorders, weakened ear, eye and touch senses, giddiness and delayed physical growth affecting their walk and speech," said the study, prepared by Qassim Salman Halas and Abdullah Abdul Wahid Al Hamadi of the FECC. "Other symptoms include disorders in the functions of the thyroid gland, aggressive behaviour including violence and crime, introversion, temporary pains and paralysis, loss of appetite, severe kidney failure, anaemia and, in some cases, death." The study said 159 brands of chocolate were tested and the researchers found that the levels of lead in those samples were mainly linked to the country of origin. It noted that some countries comply with environmental measures at sweet factories, including hygienic rules and adherence to global standards through the production process. This means their sweet products contain low levels of lead while the rate is high in the countries which do not comply with those rules. "The results showed that lead concentration in chocolates from Australia, Belgium, Saudi Arabia, the United States and France was very low while it was high in tested products from Lebanon, South Africa and Malaysia," it said. Its figures showed the average lead concentration in chocolate imported from Lebanon was among the highest in the world, standing at 2.114 milligrams per kilogramme. The maximum level was estimated at 10.560 and the minimum rate was 0.583. The average was put at 1.145 mg per kg in South Africa and 1.023 in Malaysia. Countries with low lead concentration such as the United States had an average of 0.354 mg per kg while Belgium chocolate had the lowest concentration of 0.265. The study noted that chocolate consumed by children contains between 1.5 and two mg per kg, adding that the consumption of 20 grams of chocolate per day means an intake of 40 microgrammes of lead by the child every day. "This is nearly triple the maximum limit allowed in children's bodies as they also get lead from other sources including air, food and water," it said. "It has been medically established that more than 50 per cent of the lead taken with food could reach the child's blood and such a percentage is nearly four times in adults. Since children consume more chocolate than adults, lead will accumulate in their bodies in much larger quantities. This phenomenon has serious consequences on them." The study said the most effective way to control lead concentration in children is to have them reduce their consumption of chocolate as much as possible. "Prevention is the best treatment because the damage that is caused by the poisonous accumulation of lead to their nerves, brain tissues and kidneys is irreparable." |
Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board |