Shark liver oil capsules test reveals PCBs contamination and questionable health claims
At least 5 brands of shark liver oil capsules have been contaminated with a suspected carcinogenic substance PCBs.
This was revealed today (January 17) in a test report of the Consumer Council on 20 brands of this product being marketed as a health food.
The report, contained in the latest (279th) issue of the Council's monthly magazine CHOICE, did not preclude the possibility that samples not detected with PCBs would be absolutely free of this harmful substance.
This is because the test examined only 25 out of 209 congeners of PCBs. It could not therefore be ascertained if the samples might contain PCB congeners other than those investigated in the test.
Based on human cases, and experimental animal studies, the International Agency of Research on Cancer has concluded that PCBs are probably carcinogenic to humans.
Studies have shown that the levels of PCBs in food have decreased in some countries after they have restricted the production and use of PCBs (commercially as dielectric and heat-exchange fluids in electrical equipment).
On the basis of available data, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), no levels of PCBs exposure can be identified to provide an absolute assurance of safety.
It is therefore advisable to prevent as much as possible the intake of PCBs from food items that are not an essential source of nutrients - although PCBs contamination in important food such as fish and breastmilk is unavoidable.
Of the 5 PCBs-contaminated samples, 1 in particular was known to be more serious. The sample was detected to contain 312 pg Toxic Equivalent (TEQ) of PCBs based on its suggested maximum daily dosage.
This amount of PCBs is 1.3 times the WHO's Tolerable Daily Intake (TDI) of no more than 240 pg Toxic Equivalent for a 60 kg body weight person.
One other sample was detected to contain 152 pg TEQ of PCBs for its suggested maximum daily dosage, which is within the limit of the WHO'sTDI.
The other 3 samples were detected of PCBs but as WHO has not assigned any Toxic Equivalent Factor (TEF) to the PCB congeners detected in these samples, thus no TEQ could be calculated. But there is no absolute assurance that these samples would not have detrimental effect on health.
Besides PCBs, some (12) samples were also found to be contaminated with DDT and derivatives but their quantities were considered generally within acceptable levels.
The test found 2 of the samples to fall short of their claim on their content of squalene by 16% and 49% respectively by weight per capsule. Squalene is the major constituent of these products.
Shark liver oil capsules have been much advertised with claims of all descriptions that they are beneficial to beauty and health - and even to cure or prevent diseases.
The report casts serious doubts on the validity of claims that include, for example, "strengthen immunity system", "anti-cancer", "skin whitening", "improve skin texture", "remove blemishes", "anti-aging", "enhance metabolism", etc.
Experts in the field have noted that there is no reliable scientific evidence to substantiate such claims. Nor is squalene essential to health. In fact the western medical community does not recommend consumption of squalene products and there also does not exist any recommended dosage forsqualene.
Documents submitted by the agents of these products were also unable to provide the substantiation on a sound medical and scientific basis.
It has been reported in medical journals that people, consuming squalene products from 5 capsules per day for 1 month to 25 capsules for 2 years, suffer from exogenous lipoid pneumonia.
The Consumer Council has notified the Department of Health of the 11 products with claims about curing or preventing diseases possibly in contravention of the Undesirable Medical Advertisements Ordinance.
The Council has also advised some agents to refrain from advertising their products by quoting the approval of such authorities as the "Japan Ministry of Health and Welfare", "US Food and Drugs Administration", and "WHO" which they could not substantiate. The agents concerned have agreed to withdraw such wordings from their advertisements.
Consumers are advised to consult this January issued of CHOICE.
All test samples of household heaters found not in full compliance of safety requirements
Prompt corrective action was taken by suppliers of household heaters found not to be in full compliance of the safety standard. The products were either recalled, withdrawn or improved in safety.
The voluntary action on the part of these traders followed a safety test conducted by the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department on 16 heater samples comprising 10 radiant and 6 fan models.
The results were disappointing with none of the 16 samples tested in full compliance of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) safety standard.
Among the models, 9 were found to have more serious degrees of variation from the safety standard than the others:
- Some (9) failed in the safety requirements for creepage distances and clearances designed to ensure sufficient separation between the live parts or separation between the live part and the accessible part, posing potential hazards of short circuit, flashover or electric shock.
- Some (9) failed in abnormal operation tests which simulate malfunction of the product, misuse by consumers, and operation in undesirable environment.
- Some (7) failed the temperature rise test exceeding the limit of the safety standard.
The disclosure of the test findings has led to the voluntary recall, in June last year, of 5 models which posed a higher risk of hazards to their users. Consumers possessing these 5 models in question are strongly advised to cease using the products and contact the relevant agents or suppliers.
The suppliers of 4 models, found to be substandard but posing no imminent hazards, have agreed to stop supplying the products and to recall the residual stocks from dealers and distributors.
For the remaining 7 models with less serious defects, the suppliers have also agreed to undertake improvement of the safety of their products before further supplying them to the market.
For the winter season, consumers are advised to consult the test report in this (January) issue of CHOICE and in particular to heed the models found to possess defects of a more serious nature.
Thermal underwear vs the traditional cotton and wool
What goes into making a good thermal underwear that will keep you snugly warm in winter?
According to a Consumer Council test, it's first and foremost thermal resistance (warmth keeping ability), next is air permeability (allowing moisture to escape from the body), followed by fabric thickness and fabric weight.
Against this order of importance, 5 models of thermal underwear, comprising 4 synthetic fibre and 1 blended material, were tested and rated for their overall quality and value for money.
In addition to these thermal underwear samples, the test also included, for comparison purposes, a sample each of a traditional cotton and wool underwear.
Thermal underwear of similar fabric in the test have been much advertised for their warmth keeping ability attributed to their special quality in air permeability which provides an indication of the "breathability" of the textile material.
Among the 5 samples, all but one of the thermal wear were shown to score an air permeability rating higher than that of wool and cotton.
But, as far as thermal resistance (warmth keeping ability) is concerned, the wool sample scored the highest value among all samples.
Besides thermal resistance and air permeability, other factors should also be taken into account when choosing the ideal underwear - fabric construction and thickness, fitness and cutting, all could affect the comfort of the underwear.
The test showed the average thickness of the samples to be in the range of 0.51mm to 0.83mm and the average weight from 61g to 390g. Weight is dependable on the size of the garment.
In general, the report notes, thermal underwear of synthetic fibre or blended material are easier to care than wool. They can be machine washed and dry swiftly.
Consumers contemplating a nice warm underwear to beat the cold can consult the results of the test in this issue of CHOICE.
The importance of safety markings
Body warmers such as preheated warmer and chemical warm pad have been linked to accidents involving the leaking of microwave-oven-heated fluids from the warmers. At least 2 accidents have been reported resulting in 1 death in the UK and 1 burn injury in Hong Kong.
These accidents demonstrate the importance of safety markings on these products, without which consumers may not be aware of the potential risks and be able to use the product properly.
The Consumer Council has conducted a survey on the labelling of 21 samples of body warmers - 4 hot water bottles, 2 preheated warmers and 15 chemical warm pads ranging in price from $4 to $130 - and found the situation to be far from satisfactory.
Of the 21 samples surveyed, all but 2 have failed to provide adequate bilingual (Chinese and English) safety markings for the products as is required under the Consumer Goods Safety Ordinance.
It was found that 13 samples were without both Chinese and English safety markings, 3 had only one language and 3 were without such important warning as "Do not let the body warmer come into direct contact with the skin for a long time".
The Council has notified the Customs and Excise Department of the survey findings. Consumers are strongly urged to take note of the adequacy of safety markings of these products and use them with care.
Everything you need to know about DVD players
Included in this January issue of CHOICE is a test report on 8 DVD players. Highlights of the results:
- All samples produced superb picture and sound quality.
- However, on such aspects as error correction, convenience and versatility, their performance differed more significantly.
- Some models are equipped with karaoke function and built-in surround sound decoding system.
- Their (list) prices varied considerably from $2,750 to $8,933.
The report also contains detailed explanations on the advantages and characteristics of DVD players, types of DVD, region codes, common surround sound systems such as Dolby digital and DTS.