Is our Food Safe?

A recent survey on Indian food habits and even home cooked food has shown that we have unsafe food habits and almost two million people die every year due to eating unsafe food out of which 1.5 million are children whose lives are simply cut short. Children are more at risk due to unsafe food as they are forced by a UN diktat to eat mid-day meals in schools, which puts them more at risk than others. But even mothers cooking or Ma key haath ka khana has been found to be unsafe. 

The survey shows that Indians are getting unsafe food from farms where it could be laced with toxins due to the overuse of fertilisers and pesticides. Fruits like apples are given a shine with a highly toxic substance and the same apples which sell for Rs 50 a kg are then sold in fancy packaging for Rs 250 a kg. 

Fruits are ripened with the use of chemicals which are known carcinogens and the less said about meat, poultry, dairy and fish products the better. These suffer much in terms of storage. Milk and cottage cheese in India have been found to contain vegetable oils and powders which should not have been there in the first place.

Even housewives are unaware about food safety practices and norms and the survey reveals that most housewives do not reheat food hours after it is cooked and even serve it cold from the fridge. It has been proven that if flies sit on hot food and it is consumed immediately then the person who has consumed it does not fall it but if the food is refrigerated and then consumed it can lead to a bout of gastroenteritis. Housewives, however, are unaware of this. 

The survey conducted by the Andhra Medical College also shows that farming practices coupled with unsafe eating and cooking practices provide a perfect recipe for ill health. While most of these symptoms may not be visible immediately, they can lead to health ailments ranging from allergies, stomach and liver and kidney disease to cancers. Not surprisingly the theme of the WHO this year for World Health Day in Food Safety.