This food is suddenly popular! But be careful...

This food is suddenly popular! But be careful...

As summer vacation begins, many children are attracted to "food toys" that are like "playing house". However, it should be noted that these "food toys" are mostly made of sugar and pigments, which pose health risks to children during the hands-on operation. Parents should carefully identify and guide them.

Copyright image, no permission to reprint

1

It is popular for its ability to eat and play

Recently, many young people have posted "cooking" videos on social platforms. They open the package, take out a few packets of powder, stir and knead, and after a few minutes, realistic-looking miniature food can be easily "baked". When these videos are labeled "food play", they often attract nearly a million views.

The reporter visited and found that "food toys" can also be seen on the food shelves of some supermarkets in Nanning. Most of them are classified in the candy shelves, mainly making "ice cream", "sushi" and "hamburgers". The outer packaging of these "food toys" is mostly colorful, and looks more like a box of toys than a snack.

Copyright image, no permission to reprint

2

Parents are worried about their children eating after playing

Ms. Yang bought "food toys" for her children. She told the reporter that her children ate all the "food" after pinching it out. She was a little worried: "Although the merchant marked it as 'edible' on the outer packaging, I always feel that it is a bit unhygienic for the children to play with it and then put it in their mouths."

On a shopping platform, netizens commented that the "food toys" were not tasty. Screenshot from the Internet

3

There are risks and guidance is needed

Why does the sugar powder in "food toys" change into "ramen" and "hamburgers" by just stirring? What exactly do we eat? In this regard, the reporter interviewed Mr. Du, a teacher majoring in food science and engineering at a university in Guangxi.

Teacher Du told reporters that most of these "food toys" use a common reaction in food processing: sodium alginate and calcium salts form gel. Sodium alginate is a common thickener in food. It will become a viscous liquid when dissolved in water, and calcium ions can promote cross-linking between the molecular chains of alginate, which turns the viscous liquid into a gel.

"Most of the substances that react here are food additives and flavorings. Although they are safe as long as they are added according to the regulations, what you eat is basically sugar."

Copyright image, no permission to reprint

"This type of product has the functions of both toys and food, and there are certain risks." Yao Hua, director of the Institute of Sociology of the Guangxi Academy of Social Sciences, believes that children's play with "food toys" is not done under strict sterile conditions and may be contaminated with bacteria and germs in the process. At the same time, such products also contain some additives that will cause certain harm to children's health.

Yao Hua suggested that parents should carefully identify "food toys" and guide their children correctly, such as providing a clean environment for children when playing. In addition, relevant departments should also strengthen supervision of such products.

Source: Nanfang Morning Post (Reporters: Liu Yu, Lu Xinnan)

This article has been authorized. Please contact the original author for reprinting.

The cover image and the images in this article are from the copyright gallery. The image content is not authorized for reprinting.

<<:  [Fat Bear Science] It is a rumor that drinking coffee causes cancer, but these eating habits really should not become "habits", maybe you have them!

>>:  Hormones cause obesity?! You are wrongly blaming it!

Recommend

The 4 growth logics of brand marketing

The 2021 Central Economic Work Conference held in...

Le Xiaobao: A smart parent-child hardware product with "burden"

In the traditional toy development industry, the ...

Gartner: AI Semiconductor Market to Reach $53.4 Billion in 2023

Semiconductors used to perform artificial intelli...

Understand iQiyi’s regional brand marketing in one picture!

In the era of big screens, smart TVs are highly p...

1 formula and 3 suggestions for selling products on Douyin!

Li Hao, CEO of Mars Culture, once judged that liv...

Beats Music app enters the list of "Apple-developed apps"

Beijing time, August 16 morning news, after Apple...

Case analysis: How to do user operation?

Have you felt this way recently? User operations ...

Tarot Primary Teaching Baidu Cloud Download

Introduction to Tarot Primary Teaching Resources:...

Only 3 steps to complete practical and effective competitive product analysis

This article mainly goes over with you how to eff...