The random toxic hazards thread

Since we already have a thread about food scandals, this one is for other things people might want to know about.

If it can happen on one side of the Strait, I reckon it can happen on the other side. :books: :skull_and_crossbones:

Formaldehyde is present in the printing inks used in books, magazines and newspapers.

The verdict?

Doctors told the couple to confine their collection to one room and improve ventilation in their home, while experts suggested they get rid of some of the books.

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Ventilation could certainly help. Itā€™s a concept that is under-appreciated on both sides of the strait, and it leads to many fatalities every year.

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Wtf, I hate reading now.

hahaha yeah I am trying to count the number of books I have at home and how it could be affecting me if it isā€¦

You think you got trouble? Both at home and at work I am surrounded by mountains of newspapers, magazines and booksā€¦some dating 50 something years ago.

And here I was worried about being so close to the printing machines and the resulting dust!

How about our 30 year old vinyl floors? And the asbestos/styrofoam ceilings?

How does one test for formaldehyde?

Companies come in and do a complete check of the office air.

In the 15 years I have been hereā€¦nope. Not even the AC for legionnaires disease.

If anyone can refer me to one Iā€™d like to check at home.

Thatā€™s not new, butā€“

ā€œOf course itā€™s not toxic. If there were toxic ingredients, they would have to say so on the label, right?ā€ :dizzy_face:

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Just as an aside we (or rather my wife) started using Japanese detergents for doing the laundry and she is astonished at how much fresher and cleaner the clothes are.

Iā€™ve noticed this on a couple of food items lately too.

Any brand in particular?

Donā€™t know sorry. I think the JapaneSe detergents use more enzymes.

Very common issue.

Theyā€™ll say something like 'Taiwan year and then just say sri Lanka tea and Taiwan tea and not have any info on what type of tea or % of each.

Or olive oil margarine (or whatever healthier oil) but not state how much of it is olive oil. It could be 1ā€° olive oil and 99ā€° stuff that will kill you within 5 years!

Milk and dairy products such as yoghurt in particular are a disaster zone.

Then beer is another one where they donā€™t state the ingredients and calories.

You literally have no clear idea of ingreidents and how they have been produced.

This is not only a problem in Taiwan of course.

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It might have been you who mentioned ā€˜fake milkā€™. I actually bought one of these by accident - I mean, I was in a hurry and didnā€™t bother to read the ingredients list, and it said ā€œFresh Milkā€ in English. Later on I checked: it wasnā€™t milk. It contained milk powder and water, corn syrup, and a bunch of other stuff I canā€™t recall. Iā€™ll be checking more carefully next time.

To be fair, you get exactly the same problem in the West. Iā€™ve seen ā€œyoghurtā€ sold in both the US and the UK with ingredients that simply are not yoghurt by any stretch of the imagination - HFCS, starch, the usual suspects.

Anyway, I was referring though to manufactured food items which literally donā€™t have an ingredients list, not even a vague or abbreviated one. I canā€™t remember what the items were, now - if I see them again Iā€™ll post the names.

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Yes it was I who mentioned the fake milk. Its disgustingly sweet.
I get your point about stuff generally not having ingredients lists!

Corn syrup in milk?! What!!!

Yeah ā€¦ mad world, innit.

Most shocking thing I have heard since I discovered tuna with MSG.

Warning to anyone who wears contacts!

The statement said some of the products were found to have bristles of metal brushes from the manufacturerā€™s production line in the lens solution, while others were found to have irregular solution concentration levels that resulted in irritation of the eyes, so the company decided to recall them.

:eyes:

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Cross post:

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