DNA Special: How adulterated vegetables are affecting our health, well-being

After viewers met with a rude shock on Thursday by getting to know about how TRPs were rigged, today the topic we will discuss affects largely every family in the country. It is about food adulteration. According to a new report by India's Food Safety and Standards Authority, vegetables sold in major states of India are poisonous ranging from 2 per cent to 25 per cent, which means they are not fit to be consumed. This information may not be TRP-worthy but as a responsible news channel, we feel this should be conveyed to our viewers as it concerns their health and well-being.

A country-wide investigation by the Food Safety and Standards Authority has revealed that 9.5 per cent of vegetables sold in the market are not edible because the amount of harmful heavy metals such as lead and cadmium present in these , which are at least two to three times higher than the prescribed limit.

Madhya Pradesh fares the worst in this aspect as 25 per cent of the vegetables grown and sold have failed the investigation, while Chhattisgarh is a close second with 13 per cent. These are followed by Bihar, Chandigarh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Punjab and Delhi.

During this study, the entire country was divided into five zones. Out of these, all samples taken from south zone have been passed in the investigation, while in central, eastern, western and northern zones, 5 to 15 per cent of vegetables have been found to be poisonous.

During this study, more than 3,300 samples of leafy, fruity and ground-growing vegetables were taken from all over the country. Of these 306 that is about 9 per cent of the samples failed on some scale or the other. Of the 306 samples that have failed, 260 have lead content that is much higher than the prescribed limit. If the leafy vegetables are discarded, the amount of lead in the rest of the vegetables should not exceed 100 micrograms per kilo. But 600 micrograms of lead was found in the tomatoes sold in Madhya Pradesh, while 1,000 micrograms in okra. In addition to lead, these vegetables, which are eaten across the country, also contain cadmium, arsenic and mercury.

Now you may ask  that India has always been an agrarian country and vegetables are being grown in the natural environment for thousands of years, then where did these poisons come from? The answer is that these poisonous substances in vegetables come from the use of pesticides, soil failure and sewage cultivation. This is not the story of any one city or village in the country. Rather, it is happening all over the country. The scary part is that if such huge quantities of poisonous substances enter our body, we can become physically as well as mentally sick.

Lead not only affects our brain and but also our thinking power. In addition, it also affects the development of children and is also harmful for our kidneys. Cadmium, on the other hand, weakens our bones and can worsen our kidneys, while arsenic badly affects our heart.

In 2016, we told you how vegetables growing along filthy and polluted rivers are causing cancer. We had reported from areas around the Hindon River.

Then, in 2018, we cautioned you about this poisonous cultivation on the banks of the river Yamuna in Delhi and adjoining cities and proved how your health is being constantly played with.

After our 2018 report, the Delhi government banned the cultivation of vegetables along the Yamuna and issued a warning in this regard, but only a few days later everything returned to the old pattern. So, in 2019, we again drew the attention of this country to this issue.

In the meantime, in 2017, the National Green Tribunal of Bhopal ordered FSSAI to examine samples of vegetables from all over the country.

However, FSSAI's latest report is even more intimidating, as the survey found about 10 per cent of vegetables grown and sold across the country poisonous and these poisons are making us extremely sick.

So, now you can imagine how much poison we are consuming on a daily basis. News reports usually make you aware of the issues but don't give a valid solution. But here, we will also give you the solution, which is going the organic way. Pesticides are not used in organically grown vegetables. But such vegetables are on the expensive side. Also, growing your own vegetables is a good solution to this problem. However, the process is not easy and costs it too. But if you can work a little hard, you can avoid eating poisonous vegetables.

Vegetables also become contaminated during the process of reaching your home. Eating them is also detrimental to your health. So, wash the vegetables thoroughly before cooking them. You can also dip these vegetables in salt water for a while. This separates many harmful substances glued to vegetables.

You can also peel the vegetables and wash it with water and baking soda. Use warm water while washing vegetables.

It is most important that governments take necessary steps in this direction. The rivers should be made pollution free and unless it is done cultivation around contaminated rivers should be prohibited.

The government may advise the farmers to avoid the use of pesticides. For this, governments have to give farmers viable solution to keep their crops safe.