Every Monday and Tuesday, Dr Prasad SM has children walking into his clinic with symptoms of diarrhoea. Most often, it's the roadside pani puri and masala puri that are the culprits. The kids gorge on street food during the weekend, catching infections. "Absence of regulations and checks on quality of water being used in roadside eateries is a major shortcoming in the public health monitoring system. Have you seen any BBMP health inspector checking hygiene standards," asked Dr Prasad, who heads the paediatric department at the Dr BR Ambedkar Medical College Hospital.
The first report of the World Health Organization on food-borne diseases released on Thursday reveals the impact of contaminated food on health. In terms of numbers, WHO's southeast Asia region is one of the worst affected -it sees a whopping 150 million cases and 1,75,000 deaths a year. It is second only to the African region when it comes to the incidence of foodborne diseases, says the report.
Dr Lawrence Peter, HoD and consultant gastroenterologist, Manipal Hospitals, said a majority of foodborne infection cases are due to poor water supply. "Our government is not interested in providing safe water, which should be a priority . If I see 60 patients a day in the outpatient unit, an average of 10 are suffering from food and water-borne infections," he said.
The doctor pointed out that the fault lies in handling food. "Cooking food in a hygienic manner is not enough. How you serve matters a lot and that's where the hygiene is missing. Wearing plastic gloves is not enough," Dr Peter added.
BBMP has only 68 health inspectors, who have to monitor the entire city, said Dr Upednra Bhojani, researcher with Public Health Institute, an NGO. "Food safety remains as a concern. There are stringent rules and guidelines not being implemented effectively. Lack of manpower could be one of the reasons," he added.
The first report of the World Health Organization on food-borne diseases released on Thursday reveals the impact of contaminated food on health. In terms of numbers, WHO's southeast Asia region is one of the worst affected -it sees a whopping 150 million cases and 1,75,000 deaths a year. It is second only to the African region when it comes to the incidence of foodborne diseases, says the report.
Dr Lawrence Peter, HoD and consultant gastroenterologist, Manipal Hospitals, said a majority of foodborne infection cases are due to poor water supply. "Our government is not interested in providing safe water, which should be a priority . If I see 60 patients a day in the outpatient unit, an average of 10 are suffering from food and water-borne infections," he said.
The doctor pointed out that the fault lies in handling food. "Cooking food in a hygienic manner is not enough. How you serve matters a lot and that's where the hygiene is missing. Wearing plastic gloves is not enough," Dr Peter added.
BBMP has only 68 health inspectors, who have to monitor the entire city, said Dr Upednra Bhojani, researcher with Public Health Institute, an NGO. "Food safety remains as a concern. There are stringent rules and guidelines not being implemented effectively. Lack of manpower could be one of the reasons," he added.
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