Health News

Test Many germs in salads

Stiftung Warentest warns against bacterial contamination of salads

05/29/2013

Salad is healthy thanks to its high content of vitamins and minerals. However, Stiftung Warentest found out in the study of 19 packaged salads that nearly every second salad can cause health problems. Too high a contamination of the salads, which can lead to gastrointestinal complaints in sensitive people, is to blame.

Salad with germs can cause health problems
Packaged, edible salads are often contaminated with germs according to Stiftung Warentest. In the investigation of 19 products almost half contained too many germs, the consumer advocates write in the current issue of their magazine „test“. Overall, the score was ten times „satisfying“, eight times „sufficient“ and once „inadequate“ forgive. None of the packaged salads is the recommended use-by date „According to Stiftung Warentest, a bioproduct was already spoiled, most of the germs were yeasts, but pathogens that could be dangerous to humans were not found, yeasts and molds could However, if the maximum permissible number of sensitive persons is exceeded, gastrointestinal discomfort is caused, the consumer advocates report.

Salads also contaminated with pollutants
In addition to the germ load, the pollutant content of the salads was also examined. It turned out that many salads „In the consumer magazine it is said that "the results for the individual salads were sometimes very different." For example, a biostear of a large supermarket chain's own biolabels was so heavily contaminated with pesticides that "the Salad not as organic product should have been sold. "Another salad of the same supermarket chain had the highest pollution levels, but the product had been classified in the germ load in the group of better salads, according to Stiftung Warentest total pollutant residues have been discovered in seven salads , where "the burden of a salad has even exceeded the legal limit," said the consumer advocates.

Pesticides are used as pesticides or in pest control as biocides. Pesticides harm not only unwanted pests but also the human organism. Both the immune system and the hormone balance can be affected. In addition, they can cause cancer and allergies and cause damage to the nervous system. The environmental protection organization Greenpeace warns above all about the combined use of various pesticides. While such a pesticide cocktail would not necessarily exceed the limits of individual pesticides, the combination would pose dangers. (Ag)