Food For Thought

“One man's poison ivy is another man's spinach.”
George Ade (1866-1944) American humorist

Yesterday, 27 children from the Philippines died and another 100 were hospitalized after consuming roots from the cassava plant, a major crop in Southeast Asia. The roots of the cassava are rich in protein, minerals and vitamins A, B and C. The deep-fried caramelized roots were purchased from a 68-year old female vendor who had failed to properly prepare the treats for consumption. When raw cassava is digested the human body converts part of it to cyanide.

You might wonder why anyone would eat something that is potentially dangerous, but we do it all the time. The Pufferfish is a delicacy in Japan (known as Fugu), but is also highly poisonous, containing Tetrodotoxin. Fugu must be prepared by certified chefs, yet there are still anywhere from 30 to 100 fatalities a year due to improper preparation. There are other foods that you may not even realize are dangerous, such as apple seeds (which contain cyanide) or certain types of mushrooms.

There are still other ways to be affected by food that you may not have considered, like the use of harmful additives. The FDA monitors what they consider to be acceptable levels of these additives, which help preserve food, enhance flavor or provide color, but some consumers may still have severe allergic reactions.

Food poisoning does not just affect humans, but it can happen to your pets as well. The next time you think about giving your dog a piece of chocolate you should reconsider as it could turn out to be a lethal treat. Chocolate contains theobromine, a compound that is a cardiac stimulant and a diuretic. Onions or garlic can also prove fatal to your pet due to the toxin thiosulphate. Onion toxicity can cause your pet to develop haemolytic anaemia, where the red blood cells burst while circulating in its body.

Food can also be dangerous when attempting to eat it in the wrong place...like in your car. There are numerous traffic accidents each year due to someone being distracted by food they're trying to eat or drink. Coffee is the number one offender in food related accidents. According to a survey in 2000 by The Response Insurance Agency food was number 2 on the list of driving distractions (tuning the radio dial was number 1).

I hope you find these facts as informative as I did. Please take a few minutes to educate yourself a little more. I've put all the links in this post at the bottom so you can easily access them. The Philippine incident was a tragic event but hopefully we can all learn something from it.

Cassava Plant
Dangerous Foods
Food Poisoning
Foods Poisonous to Pets
Food Additives
Food Allergies
10 Dangerous Road Foods