A food safety scandal is rocking Taiwan island, following the detection of a toxic chemical in some high energy drinks products. Nearly half a million bottled drinks and 18 tons of juice powder have been pulled from the shelves.
Drinks tossed in the basket... ready to be poured away.
Consumer said, "I used to have sports drinks after exercise. But not anymore."
Rumors have been rife since last Friday, when Di-phthalate, an industrial plasticizer was found in sports drinks.
Investigations soon traced the chemical to an emulsifier produced by Yu Sheng Chemical, an additive company in Taiwan.
Emulsifiers are a legal additive in sports drinks and fruit juices, giving the drinks a "cloudy" and "rich" look.
But the company was found to have substituted palm oil with the Di-phthalate, or DEHP, to cut production costs.
A contaminated batch of sports drinks sent from Taiwan to Shanghai have been recalled. Nearly five thousand bottles have been returned so far while port authorities continue their investigation.
According to the General Administration of Quality Supervision,Inspection and Quarantine, Shanghai imported three shipments of drinks from Taiwan. And in March this year the city again imported 792 boxes of the "yes" energy drink from the island, while 571 remain under lock and key with authorities.
The Administration also requires its local Bureaus to boost supervision efforts to prevent similar products from entering the mainland.
Bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate, commonly abbreviated DEHP, is an organic compound with the formula C6H4(C8H17COO)2. It is sometimes called dioctyl phthalate and abbreviated DOP. It is the most important "phthalate," being the diester of phthalic acid and the branched-chain 2-ethylhexanol. This colourless viscous liquid is soluble in oil, but not in water. It possesses good plasticizing properties. Being produced on a massive scale by many companies, it has acquired many names and acronyms, including BEHP and di-2-ethyl hexyl phthalate.
The US EPA limits for DEHP in drinking water is 6 ppb. The U.S. agency OSHA's limit for occupational exposure is 5 mg/m3 of air.
Effects on living organisms
Smaller penis size and other feminizing links
DEHP metabolites measured from the blood of pregnant women have been significantly associated with the decreased penis width, shorter anogenital distance, and the incomplete descent of testes of their newborn sons, replicating effects identified in animals. Approximately 25% of US women have phthalate levels similar to those in the study.
Obesity
A study on CDC data published in Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP), revealed that American men with abdominal obesity or insulin resistance (a precursor to diabetes) were more likely to have high levels of DEHP and DBP metabolites in their urine than men without those problems.
Toxicity
The acute toxicity of DEHP is 30g/kg in rats (oral) and 24g/kg in rabbits (dermal). Concerns instead focus on its potential as an endocrine disruptor. Some countries have banned DEHP from toys; see phthalate for legal status.
Cardiotoxicity
A clinically relevant dose and duration of exposure to DEHP has been shown to have a significant impact on the behavior of cardiac cells in culture. This includes an uncoupling effect that leads to irregular rhythms in vitro. This is observed in conjunction with a significant decrease in the amount of gap junctional connexin proteins in cardiomyocytes treated with DEHP.
The contaminated sports drinks have also been found in Hong Kong. The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department there has issued a recall of the dangerous goods they believe to contain DEHP.
The import company responsible for bringing in the drinks are said to have imported 2600 boxes from Taiwan and say that a small quantity have been sold. The company refused further interviews but said a hotline has been set up for any inquires and registrations of recall-related issues. Two more companies are also believed to have imported such drinks.
The Hong Kong Center for Food Safety has issued a statement asking for locals' vigilance on suspicious sports drinks from Taiwan. It will also conduct investigations at local markets to make sure the product is not being sold over the counter. Over 4000 boxes of sports drinks imported from Taiwan are suspected of being contaminated by DEHP.
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