<http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/11/22/deceptive-protein-toxin-is-becoming-more-widely-spread-in-your-food.aspx>Deceptive
"Protein" Toxin is Becoming More Widely Spread in
Your
<http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/11/22/deceptive-protein-toxin-is-becoming-more-widely-spread-in-your-food.aspx>Food
protein, toxin, toxic, food, melamine, contamination, china
First baby milk formula, then dairy-based
products from yogurt to chocolate, and now
chicken eggs have been contaminated with melamine.
An admission that the industrial chemical is
regularly added to animal feed in China has
fueled fears that the problem could be more
widespread, affecting fish, meat and possibly many other foods.
Melamine is rich in nitrogen, which means that it
gives low-quality food and feed artificially high
protein readings. But extremely high levels of
melamine can cause kidney stones, and in some
cases can bring on life-threatening kidney failure.
However, there have been no tests on melamine's precise effects in humans.
Until the contaminated baby formula became public
in a few months ago, there was never any reason
to. The situation has left consumers worldwide,
particularly parents, worried about food products
from China, and even those made elsewhere with
ingredients imported from Chinese companies.
Sources:
*
<http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory?id=6157085>ABC News October 31, 2008
Dr. Mercola
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
In the wake of the
<http://v.mercola.com/blogs/public_blog/china-tainted-milk-crisis-triggers-global-recalls-70354.aspx>tainted
dairy scandal, Chinese authorities are now
admitting that the use of melamine -- an
industrial chemical -- as filler in animal feed
(which is also exported abroad) is a widespread
practice. At this point there’s really no telling
what, or how much, of your food might therefore
contain this hazardous material.
In May of 2007, reports surfaced that
Canadian-made
<http://v.mercola.com/blogs/public_blog/another-reason-not-to-eat-farmed-fish-15440.aspx>fish
feed for farmed fish had been contaminated, and
the use of melamine in chicken feed is the cause
for this latest contamination found in eggs from
China’s leading egg producer, Dalian Hanwei Enterprise Group.
Melamine has become a popular profit booster
because it shows up as a protein in some tests
used to determine the nutritional value of a foodstuff.
Manufacturers use the compound to make their products appear more nutritious.
In 2007, melamine contaminated material labeled
as wheat gluten and rice protein was shipped from
Chinese manufacturers to pet food companies in
the U.S. and elsewhere. Thousands of pets died from renal failure as a result.
I find it baffling that toxicity experts would
dare insinuate that this dangerous material would
not likely sicken humans, despite the fact that
at least four babies have died, and some 54,000
have been hospitalized from contaminated infant formula and milk products.
Since when are children not considered humans?
They claim the amount of the chemical in most
foods, such as meat products, for example, would
be too low to cause harm. But in reality, they
have NO IDEA whether or not melamine might cause
serious health effects in humans, besides renal
failure – which in and of itself is bad enough, if you ask me.
What is Melamine?
Normally used in the manufacture of plastic and
fertilizers, melamine is a compound composed of
nitrogen, carbon and hydrogen. It was invented in
the 1830s by a German scientist, and became a
fashionable material for plastic household goods
and laminates in the late 1930s.
When combined with formaldehyde and exposed to
extreme heat, melamine creates a moldable
material that is virtually unbreakable once cooled.
And therein lies the most obvious health problem.
As explained in a recent article in the journal
<http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=18998>Eurosurveillance:
“Melamine, when associated with cyanuric acid,
can cause renal failure by the formation of
insoluble melamine cyanurate crystals in renal
tubules and/or the formation of calculi in
kidneys, ureter, urethra or the urinary bladder.
These calculi are a mixture of melamine, protein,
uric acid and phosphate and as such are distinct from other kidney stones.”
Cyanuric acid is a white, odorless solid, used as
a component in bleaches, disinfectants, and herbicides.
The FDA also permits a certain amount of cyanuric
acid to be present in some non-protein nitrogen
(NPN) additives used in animal feed and drinking
water. In water, cyanuric acid is mainly used as
a precursor to N-chlorinated cyanurates, which are used as disinfectants.
When melamine combines with the cyanuric acid, it
forms fine, insoluble, and unbreakable little
“plastic stones,” which your body cannot dispose of.
Additionally, there is evidence that melamine is
carcinogenic under conditions that produce
bladder stones in animals. And yet they insist
that this compound is more or less harmless to humans.
In the European Union, the tolerable daily intake
(TDI) of melamine is 0.5 mg/kg body weight, even
though studies to evaluate the real risks of
melamine on human health are lacking.
Symptoms of Melamine Toxicity
China and other countries like Canada and the
U.S. have reported melamine contamination of
milk-containing products, including infant
formula, commercially sold milk, frozen yogurt
dessert, coffee creamer, ice-cream, chocolate, toffees, cookies and candies.
The following symptoms have been observed in
infants affected by infant formula laced with high amounts of melamine:
* Unexplained fever arising from urinary tract infections
* Unexplained crying in infants, especially
when urinating, possible vomiting
* Small amounts of blood in the urine
* Acute obstructive renal failure
* Pain on urinating, and passage of stones while urinating
* High blood pressure
* Edema
* Pain over the kidneys
It would certainly be wise to visit your
physician if your child exhibits any of these
symptoms. The melamine “stones” will show up on x-rays.
There are also an estimated 27 million Americans
suffering from chronic kidney disease, who would
want to take extra precautions with the foods
they consume, in light of this disturbing contamination trend.
Bottom Line
The bottom line here is: know where your food
comes from and how it’s produced. This may sound
like an impossible task, and in many cases it
will be. Particularly if you depend on processed and commercially farmed foods.
However, if you purchase your raw dairy,
<http://products.mercola.com/grass-fed-beef/>grass-fed
meats, and free-range eggs from local farmers
that adhere to organic farming practices, you can
eliminate much of these worries since their
livestock must be put out to pasture and eat what
God intended for most part of the year, instead
of relying on potentially contaminated animal feed.
This
<http://www.mercola.com/article/agriculture.aspx>reference
page contains links to a long list of
organizations that can help you find local
sources for high quality organic foods.
Related Articles:
[]
GMO Food Contamination is Forever
[]
Food Safety's Dirty Little Secret
[]
Chemical Contamination Linked to Early Puberty
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BeeGirl
[ Joined on 04/08 ] [ Posted on November 4, 2008 ]
25 Points
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The bad news is that food labels don't tell the
whole story. A host of Chinese imports are hiding
behind "Made in Canada" labels, from the
freeze-dried strawberries in your cereal to the
wheat gluten in your hamburger buns.
"Made in Canada" simply means that 51 per cent of
the production cost was incurred in Canada; the
ingredients could come from anywhere, and
increasingly they come from China. For example,
manufacturers can import apple juice concentrate
from China - for about one-fifth the cost of
Canadian concentrate - add water to it in Canada, and mark it "Made in Canada."
"We eat food from China every day, we just don't
know about it," says Dr. Keith Warriner, an
assistant professor of food science at the University of Guelph.
Canadians ate $430-million worth of food from
China last year, and as China's economic power
grows so does its reach into our supermarkets,
our kitchens - even our churches. Canada imported
$9.5-million worth of communion wafers from China
last year, along with $113-million worth of
frozen fish fillets and $28-million worth of apple juice.
"A Canadian producer can source its supplies for
cents [in China] rather than for dollars here," Dr. Warriner explains.
<http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070706.wlchina06/BNStory/lifeMain/>http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070706.wlchina06/BNStory/lifeMain/
[ Reply ]
Mercola
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Sheila C
[ Joined on 12/06 ] [ Posted on November 4, 2008]
3 Points
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Mercola
Hi BeeGirl, our media can get it right
sometimes. But the real question, is "made in
U.S.A" any different? Looking at the recalls on
the Health Canada webstie (like a pig stie),
there are quite a number from the U.S.A. All of
North American food is tainted, this is not just a problem in Canada.
Mercola
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BeeGirl
[ Joined on 04/08 ] [ Posted on November 4, 2008]
4 Points
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Mercola
Sheila, I'm sure you're right an yet I couldn't
find any stories about "Made in USA" foods
containing ingredients from China. Hmmm.....how odd.
Mercola
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Aaltrude
[ Joined on 04/07 ] [ Posted on November 4, 2008]
5 Points
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Mercola
BeeGirl - To me, this highlights the importance
of avoiding processed foods and making all your food from scratch.
Mercola
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Sheila C
[ Joined on 12/06 ] [ Posted on November 5, 2008]
4 Points
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Mercola
No offense, BeeGirl, but are you in denial? Did
you see the documentary called The
Corporation? Your media is unable to bring
forward this information to you, even if it is true.
<http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/chem-chim/qa-melamine-qr-eng.php#8>http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/chem-chim/qa-melamine-qr-eng.php#8
Question 10: Why did Canada establish a tolerance
for melamine in infant formula products, while the U.S. FDA did not?
Answer 10:
No level of melamine contamination in infant
formula is considered acceptable by Health Canada and the U.S. FDA.
Health Canada and the U.S. FDA have adopted
consistent approaches in the development of their
interim standards for melamine in products
containing milk and milk-derived ingredients.
Food regulatory agencies in Canada, the European
Union, Australia / New-Zealand and Hong Kong
established a tolerance for melamine in infant
formula varying from 1 to 2.5 ppm using similar
risk assessment approaches. While the U.S. FDA
indicated it could not establish a tolerance for
melamine in infant formula, the agency referenced
analytical methods with detection limits in the
order of 1 ppm. Therefore, in effect there would
be no difference in enforcement actions in any of
these jurisdictions with respect to melamine in infant formula.
Scientists from Health Canada, the CFIA and the
U.S. FDA are working together to update their
scientific knowledge of melamine and will
re-examine interim standards of melamine in
infant formula and other food products as new data become available.
See also:
<http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/anima/feebet/ind/chinmele.shtml>http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/anima/feebet/ind/chinmele.shtml
I'm sure your country is still in denial over
BSE, as most farmers practise the 3 S's. Shoot, shovel and shut up.
Mercola
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Sheila C
[ Joined on 12/06 ] [ Posted on November 5, 2008]
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Mercola
But in answer to your question, BeeGirl, looks to
me like the USFDA says that any levels of melamine in your food are safe.
Mercola
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Sheila C
[ Joined on 12/06 ] [ Posted on November 5, 2008]
2 Points
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Mercola
BeeGirl, I found you one.
<http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19508453/>http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19508453/
So even though it may be "Made in U.S.A." there
are no guarantees that it is. This article lists
examples of products already labeled as such.
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Prayer for Unborn Life:
O GOD OF LIFE AND LOVE, You have given us the
gift to participate with You to bring new life
into the world. But, all too often, the mother's
womb, which should be a nursery of life, becomes
instead a place of it's destruction.
Help us to remove this evil and ensure respect
for all life made in Your image and likeness,
called to fulfill its promise on this earth,
and destined to find a home with you for all eternity.
We ask this through Jesus Christ, Our Lord, Our God, Our Savior, and Our ALL.
Amen.
<http://holypostage.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=37>
Christmas Postage from HolyPostage.com
<*}}}>< <http://www.holypostage.com/>Holy Postage <*}}}><
<*}}}><<http://www.halfthekingdom.org/>Half the Kingdom!<*}}}><
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