The food market at the end of p>2116 was not calm. The recent incidents of poisoned rice, tainted milk powder and paraffin oil still reverberate, and carcinogens such as Sudan red and malachite green have set off waves of turbidity. Under the overwhelming media coverage, Sudan red, malachite green and other previously unknown terms have become the focus of discussion. As the communication channel of public information is not perfect, one of the direct consequences it brings is that in today's extremely rich material, people are caught in a panic of not knowing what to eat. According to a survey in Guangzhou, 81.7% of the respondents expressed different degrees of concern about whether they were worried about safety when buying food.

however, is this "panic" necessary? Is this understanding correct? What measures should we take to avoid "toxic" food?

Food safety:

Instructor: Professor Chen Junshi, academician of China Academy of Engineering and chief scientist of key technology of food safety

-In June p>-2116, Angiostrongylus cantonensis was infected by eating snails in Beijing, with a total of 131 people infected.

-In September p>-2116, clenbuterol poisoning occurred in Shanghai, and more than 311 people were hospitalized.

-Since October 2, 2116, a large number of "red heart duck eggs" have been found to contain Sudan IV, and the carcinogen Sudan has once again entered people's field of vision.

-On October 7th, 2116, hairy crabs, turbot and mandarin fish were exposed to carcinogen malachite green and prohibited antibiotics.

There is a saying about food safety

Food safety-an exaggerated crisis

As the saying goes, "Food is the most important thing for the people". Food is related to everyone's health, and its safety is self-evident. However, frequent food safety accidents, frequent exposure of fake and shoddy products, and successive food poisoning incidents ... have led to "what else can we eat?" It has become the most common cross-examination in the media at present. The implication is that there is no absolutely safe food at present.

however, is this understanding really correct?

"This is an irrational mentality of the public under the media hype!" Faced with the question "What else can we eat?", Chen Junshi, an academician of China Academy of Engineering, chief scientist of the key technology of food safety and researcher of Institute of Nutrition and Food Safety of China Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said this in an interview with Family Medicine.

In fact, according to many food safety experts, including Academician Chen Junshi, the food safety problem in China is not as terrible as reported by some media-

First of all, we are too sensitive to food additives. Food additive is an indispensable part of modern food processing industry, which plays an important role in the color, variety, quality, taste, nutrition and preservation of all kinds of food. The food industry is unthinkable without food additives. Take sorbic acid and potassium sorbate as examples, both of which are internationally recognized as safe preservatives and harmless to human body. It is precisely because of them that sweet raisins from Xinjiang can still be fresh when they reach the mouth of Beijing people.

Secondly, in today's society, it is unrealistic and impossible to pursue "zero risk" of food. Around us, there are food safety threats all the time: kebabs contain carcinogenic benzopyrene, pickles contain nitrite, and cigarettes are no less toxic than Sudan red ... Unless we live in a vacuum, our bodies will always be attacked by harmful substances. This is true in any era. At present, no country in the world dares to say that its food is absolutely safe, so there is absolutely no need for us to worry about it all the time.

Today is safer than yesterday

In fact, from another perspective, why there are so many food safety incidents exposed now shows that our supervision system is more perfect and detection methods are more advanced.

Academician Chen Junshi said: "In fact, from the results of large-scale national market sampling conducted by the Ministry of Health every year for more than 21 years, the qualified rate of our food has increased from about 51% in the past to 91%, and even the qualified rate of soy sauce is above 81%, which is a great progress. However, ordinary people have higher requirements for food safety, and this requirement is also reasonable. "

since 2112, led by the Ministry of science and technology, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Agriculture, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine and other departments have cooperated to carry out major scientific and technological special research on "key technologies of food safety", starting from four aspects: detection, monitoring, control and demonstration, so as to provide key technical means for government regulatory authorities to strengthen supervision and reduce and control food pollution. Chen Junshi is the chief scientist of the project.

In the past, industrial and commercial law enforcement officers mostly relied on visual inspection, nose sniffing and other sensory identification and empirical judgment, which had great limitations. On the basis of establishing and improving safety standards, scientific and technical personnel invented rapid detection kits, food detection vehicles and other equipment, which greatly boosted the confidence of law enforcement personnel. At present, many large and medium-sized cities in China are equipped with food inspection vehicles, which can detect pesticide residues in vegetables in 21 minutes, formaldehyde in 31 minutes, and monitor illegal additives such as sodium bicarbonate, hydrogen peroxide and sodium nitrite. * * * involves more than 211 products in more than 11 categories, and can conduct random inspections in several supermarkets in the morning.

"Improving the detection level is a major focus of our work." Chen Junshi said that through tackling key problems, the technology they developed can effectively detect pesticides, veterinary drug residues, molds, natural toxins and pathogenic microorganisms, and one sample can detect more than 151 kinds of pesticide residues. The rapid detection kit for avian influenza and Newcastle disease shortened the work that could only be completed in the past 21 days to 4 hours, and the results were very reliable. In the process of preventing and controlling avian influenza, these technologies have been widely used throughout the country. The rapid food safety testing box even went to shenzhou spaceship to test space food.

Therefore, in the face of frequent food safety problems, we should pay attention to them, but both the media and the public should "say what they say", instead of exaggerating what the wind is like rain, and ordinary people should face them with a peaceful mind and reason.

Learn 3 tricks to take precautions seriously

Of course, food nutrition experts also pointed out that a rational face is by no means a failure to take precautions. While enjoying delicious food and facilitating life, you should also learn to solve food safety problems and protect your health to the maximum extent from "toxic" food.

Food nutrition experts have summarized three tips for us to prevent toxic food from damaging our health.

the first trick is to diversify the diet

if we look at all kinds of food safety incidents calmly, we can find that most toxic and harmful substances will do harm to the human body on the premise of a certain intake.

Taking Sudan Red as an example, in the Risk Assessment Report of Sudan Red issued by the Ministry of Health, it is pointed out that the dosage of Sudan Red to induce animal tumors is 1 ~ 1 million times that of a person, and a person needs to eat 1,211 "red heart duck eggs" to cause harm. In other words, accidental intake of food containing a small amount of Sudan red has little carcinogenic risk. Of course, Sudan red can accumulate in the human body, and if you regularly ingest foods containing high doses of Sudan red, it will increase the risk of cancer.

Academician Chen Junshi pointed out that the fact that food contains toxic ingredients does not mean that food is toxic. Whether the ingredients of a food are harmful to the human body depends on the amount of intake and the length of time. No matter how good the salt is, it will be poisoned if you eat too much at a time. Even drinking a lot of water without restraint can cause "water poisoning". On the other hand, all kinds of "toxic" additives or residues, especially all kinds of essences, pigments and preservatives, are safe at regular doses except for a few varieties that have been eliminated. Even the notorious clenbuterol and malachite green are not harmful to human body unless they are ingested in large quantities for a long time.

Experts also point out that it is equally dangerous not to eat all foods that look "dangerous". Because of this panic about food safety, it may bring about a decline in the nutritional quality of meals. Some people are afraid to eat green leafy vegetables for fear of pesticides, eggs for fear of Sudan red, and milk for fear of antibiotics ... These foods are the most important source of human nutrients. Long-term nutritional imbalance brings more risks to human body than occasionally eating a duck egg containing Sudan red.

It can be seen that for ordinary people, the most important and simplest way to solve food safety problems is to establish the principle of dietary diversification. Enriching the variety of food will naturally reduce the intake of a single food, and at a safe dose, the body's security line will not be broken.

In short, eating everything and not eating too much can not only achieve a balanced nutrition, but also effectively avoid the harm caused by "dangerous" food.

The second trick is to look at the logo when shopping

For food safety, the state has already started to build a supervision system. For those who pass the inspection and certification, the relevant logo will be printed on the food packaging. As ordinary people, we just need to know them and pay attention to the shelf life of food.

1. QS logo

QS is the abbreviation of English Quality Safety. Possession of this mark means that the food production and processing enterprises have been examined by the state, and all indicators of the food meet the requirements of relevant national standards. All QS numbers are composed of 12 digits. Consumers can check on the website of AQSIQ and enter the QS code to see if it corresponds to the enterprise products, so that they can immediately distinguish the true from the false.

2. Pollution-free agricultural products

This label indicates that synthetic safe chemical pesticides, veterinary drugs, fishery drugs, fertilizers and feed additives are allowed to be used in limited quantities, varieties and time during the production of such products. It can ensure people's basic needs for food quality and safety.

3. Green food

Green food does not simply refer to "green" food, but refers to pollution-free safe, high-quality and nutritious food. When shopping, it should be noted that only the package with the icon on the right side and the number beginning with "LB" can be called real green food, otherwise it will be counterfeit.

4. Organic Food

The term organic food is literally translated from English organic food, which refers to the agricultural and sideline products that come from the organic agricultural production system, are produced and processed according to the international organic agricultural production standards without using chemically synthesized pesticides, fertilizers, growth regulators, feed additives and other substances, and are certified by an independent organic food certification body.

of course, products with these logos are usually products with their own brands. Now, some famous brands have been formed in all walks of life in food processing. In the face of hard-won brands that win the trust of the people, enterprises naturally cherish them, thus strictly controlling the quality of products. At the same time, these large enterprises are always under the supervision of the state and consumers. Therefore, food safety is more secure if you believe and buy brand-name food.

there is a link for food to enter thousands of households from producers, that is, retailers. Compared with the traditional vegetable market, large supermarket chains will put food quality and safety in a more important position and pay attention to self-discipline. At the same time, the unified management of supermarkets also provides the possibility of unified management and unified supervision by relevant state departments. The constant attention of news media makes the behavior of supermarkets "stand in the sun" at any time and accept social supervision, which also adds a layer of protection to food safety.