India: Spinach from Hyderabad contains pesticides, say doctors

While the stereotype behind Hyderabad spinach is that it is good for health, a recent survey, quoting doctors, has found that it is harmful. ‘It amounts to directly taking poison’, they say.

The leaf vegetable is used on a daily basis for its iron content. However, the Spinach available in Hyderabad amounts to consuming pesticide. A survey by some research scholars of Jayashankar Agricultural University revealed this startling reality after testing the samples secured from Rythu bazaars in Mehdipatnam, Gudimalkapur and Shamshabad.

The survey found that the leaf vegetable contains 11 types of pesticides, including five commonly used, like chlorpyrifos, triazophos, cypermethrin, deltamethrin and profenofos, Dr Narasimha Reddy, a scientist of Pesticide Action Networks India told The Hans India. He said the pesticides were found to have been sprinkled on the leaves of the vegetable to prolong its longevity post-harvest, after cutting.

Doctors contacted by the survey team warn that consuming such leaf vegetable could lead to diseases like cancer, besides possible long-term ailments like nervous weakness. They are likely to have a severe impact on the would-be infants.

Doctors, like Ranga Reddy have been quoted as saying in the survey that these pesticides are likely have a long-term impact if they get mixed with fats in a person’s body, if not immediately. He also believes that the blame is on middlemen who use the pesticides in storage, rather than the farmers.

source: thehansinidia.com