Doctors and health practitioners never get tired of filling you in on the never-ending list of benefits that you can derive from consumption of fresh vegetables. Karachiites, brace yourself for alarming findings about a number of vegetables that you consume with a blind faith that what you are eating is very healthy.
The upsetting results that Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) has released after running tests on a number of vegetables grown in Malir area will change the way that inhabitants of this unruly city look at, what is normally considered, healthy food. These vegetables invariably form a better part of daily food menu for every household located in the capital of Sindh and the economic hub of Pakistan.
Geo News’ investigative report on vegetables grown in Malir has startled everyone, especially the health conscious people or the patients advised by doctors to stay away from meat and consume more vegetables.
These vegetables contain a much higher amount of carcinogenic metals including arsenic, cadmium and lead than considered fit for human consumption, according to international standards.
Why is it so? That’s a million dollar question. Here is why. These vegetables, including cauliflower, lemon, bitter ground (karela), sugar beet (chuqandar), green chili and cucumber are grown on a wide area in Malir NOT with fresh water but with sewer running in the city’s sewerage lines as well as untreated and highly toxic industry effluents.
You no longer need to eat unhealthy food to contract cancer, hepatitis and diseases of kidneys and liver besides those relating to stomach and intestines because this job is satisfactorily being performed by roadside stalls and other vendors selling these vegetables and we don’t even know since when.
These vegetables contain an abnormally high amount of arsenic and cadmium which are considered harmless if not cross the level of 0.03 ng/g and 0.05 ng/g respectively.
The findings of tests run by Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) revealed the following:
Cauliflower contained 41 percent higher amount of lead, 0.24 nano gram/gram arsenic and 0.372 ng/g cadmium. (Arsenic and cadmium are considered harmless if remain within the limit of 0.03 ng/g and 0.05 ng/g respectively.)
Lemon contained 21 percent higher amount of lead and 0.16 ng/g cadmium.
Karela (bitter ground) contained 48 percent higher amount of lead and 0.24 ng/g cadmium.
Chuqandar (sugar beet) contained 46 percent higher amount of lead, 0.18 ng/g arsenic and 0.69 ng/g cadmium.
Green chili contained 22 percent higher amount of lead.
Cucumber contained 41 percent higher amount of lead, 0.64 ng/g arsenic and 0.39 ng/g cadmium.
