Melamine & Colon Cancer
Melamine in an industrial chemical used in the production of thousands of products from plastic and fertilizers to concrete and tiles or bricks. However, melamine has a protein-like chemical structure that can be mistaken for milk with less sophisticated testing methods, and in 2008 it was discovered to be widely used as an adulterant in infant formulas produced in China. (Melamine was also found in pet food from China in 2007.)
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Industrial Use of Melamine
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Melamine is a common industrial chemical used in the production of thousands of products in the plastics and construction industry. Household products of all varieties from shower curtains to plastic silverware to concrete and fertilizer contain very small amounts of melamine. Melamine is very useful in many industrial processes as a stabilizing and/or emulsifying agent.
Health Effects of Melamine
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According to the World Health Organization and most other government sources, low levels of melamine are not dangerous to humans. Higher levels of melamine are harmful to humans, however, and can produce kidney stones and bladder stones, as well as other impacts on the urinary and reproductive systems, including some evidence of increased risk of bladder and colon cancer.
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Carconogenic Potential of Melamine
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The scientific evidence regarding the carcinogenic potential of melamine is mixed, and it is not officially listed as a carcinogenic substance by the WHO, but there have been a number of animal studies and a few retrospective human studies that have suggested a possible link between higher levels of melamine exposure and a higher risk of bladder and colon cancer.
Chinese Infant Formula Melamine Scare
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In 2008, it was discovered that many Chinese manufacturers of infant formulas had been adulterating their products with melamine to make it appear that it had a higher protein content. The final tally was six infant deaths and more than 300,000 babies suffering from kidney stones or other kidney/urinary-related problems. Two Chinese executives at the companies that produced the tainted formula were executed and another was sentenced to life in prison.
WHO Standards for Melamine Promulgated in 2010
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A food safety committee at the WHO promulgated international standards for melamine in food products on July 6, 2010. The new standards are 2.5 mg per kg of food products in general and 1 mg per kg of infant formula. These UN-based international standards are not legally binding, but they do provide a threshold for nations to use when setting their own standards.
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- Photo Credit baby's bottle image by Georgios Alexandris from Fotolia.com
