Prevalence and impact of dye adulteration in toffee consumption: A case study on mildly acute or acute toxicity affecting the population in misbranded toffee and candy consumption; an occupational health study report and branding strategies in marketing new products

Saurabh Dilip  Bhandare

doi:10.59400/jts1570

Prevalence and impact of dye adulteration in toffee consumption: A case study on mildly acute or acute toxicity affecting the population in misbranded toffee and candy consumption; an occupational health study report and branding strategies in marketing new products

Saurabh Dilip Bhandare Foxabell—Laboratorium Investigativum, Laboratorium Scientiae et Studiorum Investigativorum, Nashik 422101, India; Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Studies, Rural and Urban Educational Development, Nashik 422213, India

Article ID: 1570

Keywords: ANOVA; cardiovascular health; chi-square test; descriptive analysis; dye; adulteration; food safety; health effects; occupational health; stratified sampling; toffees or sugar candies

Abstract

Advancements in toxicological research have led to the development of several innovative methods for assessing the safety and potential risks of chemicals and toxic substances. This study investigates the prevalence and health implications of dye adulterants in toffees in excess amount from various brands distributed during a corporate year-end evaluation in Navi Mumbai, New Bombay 2015. The research employs random and stratified sampling methodologies to ensure a comprehensive analysis of the market. Laboratory tests reveals that dye X is present in 100% of samples from each brand, contradicting the natural flavour labels. Descriptive statistics indicate variations in dye concentration among brands, and ANOVA results demonstrate statistically significant differences in mean dye concentrations. Despite the presence of dye X across all brands, the chi-square test does not show a significant association between dye presence and brand at a 0.05 significance level. Employees reported adverse health effects, including dysuria, fatigue, and cardiovascular disturbances, after consuming the toffees, and tea. These findings highlight the need for stringent regulatory measures and consumer awareness to ensure food safety and mitigate health risks associated with food dye adulteration. The primary focus of this research study was to advance new methodologies for health monitoring and toxicology analysis that minimise large-scale disruptions. It aimed to foster innovation in medical science and establish new, documented methods for healthcare practitioners and professionals. These methods are designed to comprehensively analyse and document toxic events and systematically record data, enhancing the ability to manage and understand toxicological risks in a more controlled and efficient manner.

References

[1]Robson K, Dean M, Brooks S, et al. A 20-year analysis of reported food fraud in the global beef supply chain. Food Control. 2020; 116: 107310. doi: 10.1016/j.foodcont.2020.107310

[2]Leuschner RGK, Hristova A, Robinson T, et al. The Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) database in support of risk analysis of biogenic amines in food. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis. 2013; 29(1): 37–42. doi: 10.1016/j.jfca.2012.09.004

[3]Bouzembrak Y, Marvin HJP. Prediction of food fraud type using data from Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) and Bayesian network modelling. Food Control. 2016; 61: 180–187. doi: 10.1016/j.foodcont.2015.09.026

[4]Lüth S, Boone I, Kleta S, et al. Analysis of RASFF notifications on food products contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes reveals options for improvement in the rapid alert system for food and feed. Food Control. 2019; 96: 479–487. doi: 10.1016/j.foodcont.2018.09.033

[5]Drabova L, Alvarez-Rivera G, Suchanova M, et al. Food fraud in oregano: Pesticide residues as adulteration markers. Food Chemistry. 2019; 276: 726–734. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2018.09.143

[6]Xiong JS, Branigan D, Li M. Deciphering the MSG controversy. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Medicine. 2009; 2: 329–336.

[7]Bhandare S. Advancements in Food Safety: From Novel Approaches to Controversies and One Health Perspectives. Food and Drug Safety. 2024; 1(1): 44–59. doi: 10.55121/fds.v1i1.149

[8]Moore JC, Spink J, Lipp M. Development and Application of a Database of Food Ingredient Fraud and Economically Motivated Adulteration from 1980 to 2010. Journal of Food Science. 2012; 77(4). doi: 10.1111/j.1750-3841.2012.02657.x

[9]Bhandare S. Robust Chemical Testing for Food Safety: Assessing and Identifying Dye Adulterants in Blueberry Juice: A Comprehensive Case Study with Statistical Measures and Correlation Analysis. Food and Drug Safety. 2024; 1(1): 28–43. doi: 10.55121/fds.v1i1.145

[10]Essuman EK, Teye E, Dadzie RG, et al. Pesticide Residues and Unauthorized Dyes as Adulteration Markers in Chilli Pepper and Tomato. International Journal of Food Science. 2023; 2023: 1–16. doi: 10.1155/2023/5337150

[11]Klátyik S, Darvas B, Mörtl M, et al. Food safety aspects of pesticide residues in spice paprika. International Journal of Nutrition, Food and Engineer. 2016; 10(3): 188–191.

[12]Schwack W, Pellissier E, Morlock G. Analysis of unauthorized Sudan dyes in food by high-performance thin-layer chromatography. Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. 2018; 410(22): 5641–5651. doi: 10.1007/s00216-018-0945-6

[13]Codex Alimentarius Commission. Further Consideration of Processing as Related to The Establishment of Mrls for Processed Foods: Recommendations on Principles and Practices. In: Proceedings of the Forty-First Session of the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues; 20–25 April 2009; Beijing, China.

[14]Röösli M, Fuhrimann S, Atuhaire A, et al. Interventions to Reduce Pesticide Exposure from the Agricultural Sector in Africa: A Workshop Report. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022; 19(15): 8973. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19158973

[15]Wu P, Gu M, Wang Y, et al. Transfer of Organochlorine Pesticide Residues during Household and Industrial Processing of Ginseng. Journal of Food Quality. 2020; 2020: 1–9. doi: 10.1155/2020/5946078

[16]Daniel WW. Biostatistics: A Foundation for Analysis in the Health Science, 7th ed. John Wiley and Sons; 2005.

[17]Conover WJ. Practical non parametric statistics, 3rd. John Wiley and Sons; 2006. pp. 239.

Published

2025-02-13

How to Cite

Bhandare, S. D. (2025). Prevalence and impact of dye adulteration in toffee consumption: A case study on mildly acute or acute toxicity affecting the population in misbranded toffee and candy consumption; an occupational health study report and branding strategies in marketing new products. Journal of Toxicological Studies, 3(1), 1570. https://doi.org/10.59400/jts1570

Download Citation

Issue

Vol. 3 No. 1 (2025): (In publishing)

Section

Article

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Insecticides represent the most used control method against the insect pests of stored food products. But there are strains of insects which are resistant to these insecticides: it is the case of the beetle of the chickpea Callosobruchus maculatus . The present study has for objective the evaluation of the biological activity of chitinolytic enzymes extracted from the fish offals Scorpaena scrofa (scorpion fish) on this beetle at different doses (3%, 6%, 9%, 12%, 15% and 21%) prepared with the buffer solution. The results obtained from three treatments (T 1 , T 2 and T 3 ) realized according to the dose of the crude enzyme and the time of exposure were compared with those of the controls and have showed a very significant efficiency of our crude enzyme on the reduction of the fertility rate of 100% by treating the couple (T 1 ) at the same time as to treat the male (T 3 ) and the female (T 2 ) separately with the strongest dose (21%) for 48 h of exposure. It would be thus desirable to demonstrate the activity of these enzymes in the real conditions of storage.

Na + -K + -ATPase is a membrane bound enzyme responsible for the transport of ions through the membrane and immediate release of energy. This enzyme is known to be an early target for oxygen radical induced damage to intact cell. Exposure of C. punctatus to subacute concentrations of lindane for 96 h caused significant reduction in the activities of Na + -K + -ATPase in all the tissues of the fish tested; brain being maximally affected and the heart being least affected organ at the highest concentration of lindane (0.1 mg/L). The effect of pesticide was concentration dependent. The percent decrease in the activity of Na + -K + -ATPase in brain, gills, heart, kidney, liver and muscle was found to be 36.7, 23.4, 19.2, 29, 22.9 and 29.7, respectively. The order of level of enzyme activity recorded was as following: liver > gills > kidney > brain > muscle > heart in the control.

Due to the ubiquitous occurrence in the aquatic environment and terrestrial ecosystem and underlying eco-environmental risks, nano/microplastics (NPs/MPs) have sparked great public concerns. The purpose of this work is aimed to summarize the harmful influence of NPs/MPs on reproduction and offspring health and further explore the potential mechanisms of action, thereby facilitating the more comprehensive understanding of NPs/MPs features. Literature search databases included EMBASE, Web of Science, and PubMed. The study selection and data extraction were implemented according to the inclusion criteria. NPs/MPs could accumulate and trigger reproductive toxic responses and thereafter generate deleterious effects on the offspring health. Accordingly, the reproductive toxicity of NPs/MPs was characterized as the sperm deformity, decline in sperm count and motility, follicular growth tardiness, ovarian fibrosis, granulosa cell death, disorder of reproductive hormone secretion, as well as the fetal growth restriction, glycolipid metabolism disorder, and inflammatory responses of the next generation. Additionally, mechanism research revealed that NPs/MPs exposure brought about inflammatory responses and oxidative stress and thereafter, destroyed the blood-testis barrier (BTB) integrity, motivated spermatogenic cell apoptosis by activating the JNK and p38/MAPK-Nrf2/NF-κB pathways, and induced ovarian granulosa cell pyroptosis and apoptosis and subsequent ovarian fibrosis via the Wnt/β-Catenin and NLRP3/Caspase-1 pathways. Nevertheless, this work also highlighted the imperative requirements for scientific and systematic risk assessments of NPs/MPs, so as to identify the feasible risk mitigation strategies.