16 Questions
What are the three main sources of environmental contaminants in food?
Air, water, and soil
What are natural toxicants in foods?
Substances that occur naturally in certain foods and have the potential to be toxic to humans.
How do environmental contaminants find their way into our bodies?
Through consumption of contaminated plants, meat, milk products, fish, and other seafood.
What is the harm of environmental contaminants dependent on?
Persistence - whether it lingers in the body or the environment.
Define contaminants in the context of food.
Substances that make a food impure and unsuitable for ingestion.
Why is there growing concern about environmental contamination of foods?
Due to increased population and industrialization.
What are short-lived contaminants in the environment broken down by?
Microorganisms, sunlight, or oxygen
What is the process known as when contaminants resist breakdown and accumulate in each level of the food chain?
Bioaccumulation
How did acute contamination of Methylmercury occur in Minamata, Japan in 1953?
Methylmercury contamination of fish from the bay where people lived
What caused the acute contamination of PBB (Polybrominated Biphenyls) in Michigan in 1973?
Accidental mixing of PBB into livestock feed
What were the health effects observed in individuals exposed to PBB in Michigan in 1973?
Nervous system aberrations and liver disorders
What was the source of PCB (Polychlorinated Biphenyls) contamination in Japan in 1968 and Taiwan in 1979?
Contaminated rice oil
What were the effects seen in children born to women who had eaten the tainted rice oil containing PCB?
Developmental problems
In what ways can contaminants enter the environment?
Accidental spills, industrial wastes
What is the sequence in which living things depend on other living things for food called?
Food chain
What is the fate of short-timed contaminants in the body?
Rapid excretion or metabolization to harmless compounds
Learn about environmental contaminants, natural toxicants in foods, and indirect or incidental additives with Dr. Lim See Meng, Senior Lecturer at the Nutritional Sciences Programme Centre for Community Health Studies.
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