Though the doses were far too small to have an effect on anyone drinking them, the researchers said their findings highlighted how man-made chemicals are now found throughout the food chain, the Daily Mail reported. The highest quantities of medicines were found in cow milk, and the researchers believe some of the drugs and growth promoters were given to the cattle, or got into milk through cattle feed or contamination on the farm.
The team analyzed 20 samples of cow milk bought in Spain and Morocco, along with samples of goat and breast milk. Their breakdown , which is published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, revealed that cow milk contained traces of anti-inflammatory drugs niflumic acid, mefenamic acid and ketoprofen - commonly used as painkillers in animals and people. It also contained the hormone 17-beta-estradiol , a form of the sex hormone oestrogen . The hormone was detected at three millionths of a gram in every kilogramme of milk, while the highest dose of niflumic acid was less than one millionth of a gram per kilogram of milk.
The scientists, however, said their technique could be used to check safety of other types of food. "We believe the methodology will help provide a more effective way of determining presence of these kinds of contaminants in milk or other products," said researcher Evaristo Ballesteros from the University of Jaen in Spain. "Food quality control labs could use this tool to detect these drugs before they enter the food chain. This would raise consumers' awareness and give them the knowledge that food is... harmless, pure, genuine, beneficial to health and free of toxic residues," he added.
Source: The times of india.
