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Pesticides in Chinese Bamboo Shoots

Cans of bamboo shoots imported from China may have concerning levels of pesticide contamination.

October 24, 2012 |
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Supplementary Info

Pesticides in Chinese Bamboo Shoots, 3.7 out of 5 based on 3 ratings

Sources Cited

Guo ZW, Chen SL, Xiao JH. Organochlorine pesticide residues in bamboo shoot. J Sci Food Agric. 2011 Feb;91(3):593-6.

Acknowledgements

Image thanks to: Joi.

Transcript

There are some plant foods that we may want to stay away from, such as cans of bamboo shoots imported from China. This was a study to evaluate the residues of organochlorine pesticides like DDT in Chinese bamboo shoots. Now, this was research carried out in China, and as I read the article I couldn't help but get a distinct sense they were trying to downplay their findings. For example, they said only nine pesticides were detected.

This was their conclusion: "While all sampled bamboo shoots contained these pesticides, most… were safe for consumption.”

Uh, no thanks.

To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring watch the above video. This is just an approximation of the audio contributed by Kerry Skinner.

To help out on the site please email volunteer@nutritionfacts.org

Dr. Michael Greger

Doctor's Note

That was short and sweet! OK, maybe not so sweet. Because organochlorine pesticides tend to build up in animal fat (see for example, Cannibalistic Feed Biomagnification, Avoiding Other Banned Pesticides, and Industrial Carcinogens in Animal Fat) we tend to think of meat, eggs, and dairy as being the most heavily contaminated. We especially think of farmed fish and fish oil, but studies like this suggest there may also be significant plant sources. Do environmental pollutants result in a weighty number of cancer cases? See yesterday's NutritionFacts.org video-of-the-day Pesticides in Chinese Bamboo Shoots. How contaminated is the general population? See the first video in the series CDC Report on Environmental Chemical Exposure.

For some context, please check out my associated blog post: Pollutants in Californian Breast Tissue

If you haven't yet, you can subscribe to my videos for free by clicking here.

  • http://nutritionfacts.org/ Michael Greger M.D.

    That was short and sweet! OK, maybe not so sweet. Because organochlorine pesticides tend to build up in animal fat (see for example, Cannibalistic Feed Biomagnification, Avoiding Other Banned Pesticides, and Industrial Carcinogens in Animal Fat) we tend to think of meat, eggs, and dairy as being the most heavily contaminated. We especially think of farmed fish and fish oil), but studies like this suggest there may also be significant plant sources. Do environmental pollutants result in a weighty number of cancer cases? See yesterday’s NutritionFacts.org video-of-the-day Pesticides in Chinese Bamboo Shoots. How contaminated is the general population? See the first video in this series CDC Report on Environmental Chemical Exposure.
     
    If you haven’t yet, you can subscribe to my videos for free by clicking here.

    • HemoDynamic, M.D.

      Uhh No Thanks!  Speaking of that ‘Inquiring Minds’ want to know about GMO’s and the BT toxin (Bacillus thuringiensis’ Crystal Toxin) that is in many GMO’s soy, maize and Canola oil.
      This toxin forms pores in the cells of the intestinal wall in certain insects causing cell death and eventually insect death. 

      Preliminary studies had to be obtained under court order (Because Monsanto doesn’t let this info out) show the possibility of nephro and heptotoxicity in rats.  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=safety%20of%20gmo%20crops%20animals%20france

      We ingest this toxin and there are reports of this toxin in the guts of pregnant women. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21338670
      This has a huge potential to cause ‘leaky gut’ syndrome which is the probable theory of cause of several autoimmune disorders.

      If you live in California vote YES on 37.  We as a public need to be informed of what is in our food!  Then at least we have a CHOICE to eat or not eat GMO products!

      This topic is very interesting regarding the Human toxicity of GMO’s and I am not sure if Dr. Greger would want to tackle this subject because of the potential legal risk of offending Monsanto.

      But the “Inquiring Minds of Food Toxicity” want to know, is it Good or Bad, Fact or Fiction!

      ;-}

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=670735069 Tan Truong

    “Uhhh no thanks.”

    LOL.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Shane-Jackson/1135727622 Shane Jackson

    Ackkk now I can’t go eat incredibly over salted chinese food without seeing if their bamboo shoot cans are imported from China.

  • David Ellis

    I checked my emails just to see if your new video was up. I’m looking forward for tomorrow! 

  • Bgrune

    This is gonna be a long series of videos if the good Dr. is going to focus on such minute subjects. I think that we should all avoid almost any foods imported from China for a variety of reasons that include probable contamination, false labeling, carbon footprint, and probably several others. This leaves aside the fact that canned vegetables in general are not nutritious. I realize that it may be difficult to come up with significant facts every day and I very much appreciate this site and what Dr. Greger is doing for all of us, so please don’t judge my comments too harshly.
    Thanks

  • henke

    I find it confusing, what are we to eat, every thing is bad. Shure greens are good but they dont have any calories, then you turn to seeds and grains but they are bad since they are full of anti nutrients. So you try sweet potato, well they are packed with oxalic acid. What is left is only fruit but they also have lots of stuff that is bad. So where do you get the staple calories from?

    • Veganrunner

      Hi Henke,

      If I were you I would start with video #1 and progress through all the videos. All your questions will be answered!

    • WholeFoodChomper

      Sometimes taking all this information in can be a bit confusing and overwhelming, but over time, and once you learn more, I think you will find that it is actually not that confusing at all. That, in fact, it is really pretty simple.   The key is to eat as much plant-based whole foods (fruits, veggies, legumes, whole grains, etc.) as possible.  There are many ways to do this and many resources out there that can help you figure out which method works best for you. This website is a great place to start. You may also want to look into reading books by the following: Dr. Joel Fuhrman, Dr. T. Colin Campbell, Dr.Caldwell B. Esselstyn Jr., Dr. McDougall, and Dr. Neil Barnard.

      You do not have to eat just fruits to eat healthier (not all seeds and grains are bad and sweet potatoes are a great menu option). It’s true, for various reasons some people opt to be very strict with plant-based diets and others choose to be a bit more flexible.  It really depends on one’s own circumstances. I started out eating vegetarian before dinner time, then switched over to vegan before dinner time.  Now, I eat plant-based vegan at home and whatever I want when I go out (but try to eat on the healthier side…although I do have my weak moments…hey. I’m human and I enjoy food).

      The transition to a plant-based diet can be tricky, and it will take some adjusting, but it is completely possible.  Just know that you can ease into it until you find the balance that works for you.

    • Toxins

      Grains and beans do indeed have antinutrients but only if you eat them raw, which is very uncommon. Eating foods high in oxalic acid does not mean they are unhealthy and including many high oxalate foods in your diet will not make you calcium deficient.

  • Lscoop

    Went thru my pantry and luckily only one was from China (don’t know where the couple of cans that I went through in the last month or two came from, tho!)…..the other two were from Thailand so hopefully those are o.k.

  • WholeFoodChomper

    What’s the verdict on water chestnuts?

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