Toxic Squid Snack?

Recently Hong Kong consumer council published some results on arsenic analysis in dried squid snack. I can't resist commenting how misleading these statements were given. As a result, different newspapers quoted these slightly differently and confused people more. In the press release on Apr 16, 2007 (taken from CHOICE magazine issue #366), it said:
"The health warning followed a Consumer Council test on 65 samples of dried meat products comprising 15 dried beef, 14 dried pork, 13 pork floss, 23 shredded squid and dried fish, sourced from local outlets.
Under the law, the maximum permitted levels of arsenic in squid and fish are 10 mg/kg and 6 mg/kg respectively. In the test, the amount of arsenic found in 8 shredded squid samples ranged from 12.7 mg/kg to 35.3 mg/kg and 1 dried fish sample 7.7 mg/kg.
In one shredded squid sample, the total arsenic (both organic and inorganic) found was a high 35.3 mg/kg.
It is stipulated in the Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intakes (PTWI) of JECFA (Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives) that the amount of inorganic arsenic that can be ingested weekly for a 60 kg person is 0.9 mg.
So, consuming three packages (90 g each) of the sample detected with 35.3 mg/kg total arsenic (assuming 10% of it was inorganic) in a week may already have exceeded the weekly tolerable level.
The Consumer Council has referred the findings of arsenic in these popular snacks to the Centre for Food Safety (CFS) for suspected breach of the Food Adulteration (Metallic Contamination) Regulations."

Arsenic is 'well known' for being toxic. However, not everyone knows that arsenic exists as different forms, toxic inorganic form and non-toxic organic form. The most common form of organic arsenic compound in seafood, arsenobetaine, will be excreted in urine within a couple of days after consumption. Total arsenic concentration could only be used as a guildline but not a true indicator of the toxicity. In fact, 'assuming' 10% of total arsenic in squid was inorganic arsenic is incorrect. According to previous studies less than 1% of total arsenic in squid is the toxic inorganic form.

If you want to spend time worrying about consuming too much arsenic from seafood products, you may as well worry about the water you drink and the rice you eat. According to the data from US, the amount of inorganic arsenic taken by an average adult per day from seafood is negligible compared with that from rice, vegetables and water. Since the arsenic compounds are mostly organic arsenic in seafood it can't even be linked up to the word 'toxicity' in this regard.

大選投票

今天是加拿大聯邦大選。放工時到達投票站﹐見到很多選民在排隊。突然覺得“每一個人都很重要”﹐合資格的選民﹐無論是甚麼性別﹐職業﹐身份﹐地位﹐一概不重要﹐一票就是一票。在民主國家投票選政府是義務﹐也是權利。不喜歡政府﹐大可以投票支持另一個黨﹐把它推倒。看看很多發展中國家的人民﹐冒死都要去民主選舉﹐所以更加要珍惜這種民主自由﹗

中國某三星級酒店餐牌-答案

今天公佈結果﹐先忍住不要笑﹗
(1) Top soup cloud swallows-上湯雲吞
(2) Black winter in type seafood soup in day-日式海鮮湯烏冬
(3) The week beats the fish soup-周打魚湯
(4) Cook sand-廚師沙律
(5) The cold cow in west in special grade picks-特級西冷牛扒
(6) The Bureau swallows to take the fish idea powder-焗吞拿魚意粉
(7) Butter many privates-牛油多士
你估中多少個呢﹖哈哈﹗

中國某三星級酒店餐牌

某天剛剛收到一個電郵﹐說是中國某三星級酒店餐牌。筆者看到後笑個不停。不知道是不是真有其事﹐如果是作出來的那位人兄創意簡直滿分。如果閣下沒有看過該電郵﹐又有興趣估一下﹐究竟那些菜名是甚麼﹐請一路看下去﹐筆者選了幾個很有趣的﹐過幾天筆者再公佈答案是甚麼。
(1) Top soup cloud swallows
(2) Black winter in type seafood soup in day
(3) The week beats the fish soup
(4) Cook sand
(5) The cold cow in west in special grade picks
(6) The Bureau swallows to take the fish idea powder
(7) Butter many privates

塞車

自從放完假開始上班後﹐每天上班下班都遇著塞車。可能是因為雨季開始的關係﹐好像多了很多人開車。筆者上班的路徑﹐說近不近﹐說遠也說不上﹐不塞車時開三十五分鐘便到﹐塞起車來一個多小時也試過﹗塞起塞得久﹐悶得久﹐連上班的心情也受影響﹐暗罵﹕ ‘不如多睡半小時好過﹗反正晚半小時出門口﹐可能只是晚五至十分鐘到達﹗’塞車在每一個城市都會發生。人口增多﹐住的地方不夠﹐通常就遷往城市外的郊外地方﹐白天工作又跑回市區(好像小時候讀‘社會科’﹐ 又像中學的‘地理科’)。
筆者有一個同事﹐住在陽光海岸(溫哥華的鄉郊地區)﹐ 每天又坐船又坐車﹐加上塞車﹐每一程要一個半至兩小時﹐來回就要四個小時﹗起初她都不介意﹐每天九時就睡覺﹐五時就起床。平日除了上班下班﹐吃完飯就是睡覺﹐週末乾脆躲在家﹐漸漸她都忍不住﹐最近連工也辭掉﹗
筆者對塞車是無可奈何﹐ 情願想想法子在車上解悶﹐ 所以筆者在車上必備各種音樂CD﹐雖然不至於像其他司機連刷牙﹐化妝﹐吃早餐﹐看報紙等都在塞車中進行。雖然是在塞車﹐ 始終不能分心﹐安全至上。各位又有甚麼在塞車中解悶和提神的方法呢﹖

時差

回家幾天還受時差影響﹐ 老是失眠。可能生成辛苦命﹐一上班第一天晚上就沒有了時差﹐ 但是因為欠了好幾天的睡眠﹐早上很不容易才能起床﹐加上在放假期間堆積下來的工作﹐真的沒有多大心情上班﹐更不願意起床。
常常說笑﹐出去旅行回來要多放一個假期﹐收拾行李﹐洗衣服之餘﹐ 更要處理旅行期間堆積下來的賬單﹐ 家務和差事﹐真的不知道是不是自找辛苦﹐ 還未算旅行前的準備和旅行當中遇到的問題呢﹗有時很懷念小孩時跟父母去旅行﹐除了幫手放幾件衣服進行李﹐ 甚麼都不用理。放假不出去走走﹐筆者也試過﹐結果在家忙這忙那﹐比上班還忙﹗
說起來﹐ 旅行回來還有一個問題﹕筆者偶然也會忘了旅行前藏起來的東西放了在那裡﹐ 雖然不至於像一些朋友連電郵和銀行卡的密碼都忘掉﹗
要去旅行去得隨心所欲﹐ 回來後又輕輕鬆鬆的﹐看來筆者可能要等到退休那時﹗

自由行

剛剛回港一趟‘自由行’﹐兼換了新身份證﹐真的要一讚香港智能身份證中心的職員﹐好禮貌之餘效率又快﹗每一次回港除了和親戚朋友見見面和購物之外﹐筆者都會花一些時間懷舊﹐ 逛逛以前去過的一些特別地方﹐ 如郊外﹐ 遠足徑等。 一個週末﹐筆者從太平山頂一至走到薄扶林水塘﹐遠足徑不太長﹐ 沿路又有風景看﹐(包括小動物﹕數隻可愛的小狗﹐一條巨型的蜈蚣和一條大概一呎半長的蛇﹗)
筆者這次又去過一趟上海。這次已經是筆者第四次去上海﹐除了第一次真正是遊客﹐去觀光以外﹐其他時間都是吃﹐吃飽了又購物去。上海越來越‘洋氣’﹐賣中國和上海傳統的東西的地方差不多只剩下‘城隍廟’的‘上海老街’﹐反而賣外國名牌(和名牌假貨)的地方週圍都是。筆者最覺得討厭是在街上給無數賣冒牌手錶和手袋的人煩著。反正他們覺得你不像本地人﹐你就要準備有人會向你兜售假貨。
可能離開香港已經頗長時間﹐不知不覺成了‘老華僑’﹐筆者現在對一些傳統中國工藝品很有興趣﹐ 在香港會去‘中藝’﹐‘裕華’等商店看看﹐反而小時候除了跟母親去買校服毛衣和茶葉﹐糖果之外﹐提起去‘國貨公司’都怕怕。一次在‘裕華’買東西﹐店員居然跟筆者說英語﹗可能現在去國貨公司買東西的人越來越少﹐差不多只有‘遊客’才去吧﹗
臨離港前一天﹐去銅鑼灣一家很長歷史的乾果店﹐發現了‘吊桶錢箱’﹗ (見筆者八月四日 ‘吊桶錢箱’一文)﹐ 吊桶是那種紅A牌典型香港式膠桶﹐連上一塊大鐵﹐ 很有趣﹗