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"Formaldehyde dishes" hurt the liver and kidneys, but also cause cancer?

 Last Update: 2021-11-11
 Source: Internet
 Author: User

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Original: Ma Guansheng

"Vegetable market traders will be soaked in formaldehyde and vegetables, this dish toxic, the vendors do not eat!"
.
I don’t know when, such rumors have spread widely on the Internet, and people are frightened
.
They have to think twice about buying a dish .
What exactly is this "formaldehyde dish"? Today we will take a closer look
.
Formaldehyde, everyone should be familiar with, is a chemical raw material often encountered in decoration
.
Under normal circumstances, it is gaseous and emits a pungent odor when the temperature is higher
.

If human beings are exposed to the environment with excessive formaldehyde concentration for a long time, it will cause physical discomfort, disease and even cancer
.
The World Health Organization has classified it as a Class I carcinogen
.

Where does the formaldehyde in vegetables come from?

Formaldehyde in vegetables can be divided into two types: endogenous and exogenous:

Endogenous formaldehyde

It is produced during the metabolism of organisms, naturally present in many foods, such as vegetables, mushrooms, fruits, meat, fish and so on
.
The content of this type of formaldehyde is extremely small and basically does not cause harm to the human body
.

Exogenous formaldehyde

It is caused by improper use in the process of food processing, transportation and sales, and is the main cause of food formaldehyde pollution
.
The "formaldehyde cabbage" and "formaldehyde baby cabbage" that broke out a few years ago all belong to this situation
.

The reason why vegetable vendors use formaldehyde is that spraying diluted formaldehyde on vegetable roots can not only reduce heat and rot during long-distance transportation of vegetables, but also make the roots white, which is more popular with buyers
.

China's "Food Safety Law" and "Agricultural Product Quality Safety Law" clearly stipulate that formaldehyde must not be used in the production, operation and use of food processing aids
.
In other words, it is illegal to add formaldehyde to food in any way
.

Therefore, "formaldehyde dishes" are only an isolated phenomenon, and everyone's hanging heart can be put aside a little
.

How harmful is the use of formaldehyde in vegetables?

Under normal circumstances, the hazards of formaldehyde mainly come from inhalation through the respiratory tract
.
Acute exposure can irritate the eyes, nose and throat,

Damage the sense of smell, increased respiratory diseases, resulting in dry throat pain, cough, chest pain, shortness of breath, wheezing and so on
.
Long-term exposure to formaldehyde can damage the lungs, liver, kidneys, and nervous system, and even affect the embryos in pregnant women
.
As for the carcinogenic effects of formaldehyde, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Food Safety Agency all believe that the carcinogenic effects of formaldehyde are mainly caused by respiratory inhalation, and there is no evidence that edible formaldehyde has carcinogenic effects
.

For food intake, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommends the allowable daily intake (ADI) of formaldehyde to be 0.
2 mg/kg body weight
.
Calculated based on a body weight of 60 kg, the total allowable daily intake of formaldehyde is 12 mg
.
A survey in Guangzhou showed that the average formaldehyde content of all vegetables in the local farmers' market was 0.
272 mg/kg
.

Based on this, we can conclude that regardless of the intake of formaldehyde from other foods, the intake of formaldehyde must exceed the allowable daily intake, which requires eating 44.
118 kg of vegetables a day! But it is difficult to eat so many vegetables every day
.

Therefore, the risk of exposure to formaldehyde through vegetables is still very low
.
Furthermore, formaldehyde is a very volatile substance with a pungent odor.
If there is a high concentration of formaldehyde on vegetables, it can be smelled without putting it under the nose, who would buy it?

But if we feel that we might have bought vegetables with formaldehyde, if we are not assured, it is best to remove the outer leaves and soak them in clean water several times.
If time permits, we can cook them for a few more minutes
.

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