These roadside edibles are poisons: Experts fly red flags to Lagosians

FROM its major streets, down to the very hidden and innermost part of the Lagos metropolis, they are there. Very ubiquitous! They are harbingers of unwholesome foods, sellers of appetite-whetting but highly injurious edibles that come in forms of  fruits, fried food, canned or frozen edibles, displayed either in lock-up shops or open markets.

Curiously, the victims of their actions, the residents, are either too busy to notice the danger inherent in consuming these foods or have decided to leave their fate in God’s hands.

Eating outside the home, a culture hitherto alien to the people in this part of the country has continued to catch the fancy of many Lagosians today.  The economic pressure being experienced in many homes seems to be taking its toll on the eating habit of many families in the Centre of Excellence.

“You don’t expect me, after leaving my house as early as 5 o’clock in the morning and being in traffic for hours to go to the kitchen, after managing to get home at night,” explained Mrs Yemisi Aboaba, a staff member one of the nation’s first generation banks, in a chat with Saturday Tribune. She was giving reasons why eating out is fast gaining ground in the nation’s major cities, especially Lagos.

Perhaps this explains the increasing appetite for edibles among Lagosians outside the home, not minding the effects of such consumption on their general well-being.

For instance, while the explanation given by Mrs Aboaba may succinctly capture the reasons family cooking pots in many homes have continued to gather dust and cobwebs, health experts believe such excuse is not enough for anyone to let down their health guards. These professionals in public health are insisting that there is the need to exercise restraint as far as consuming items such as canned drinks, juices, canned foods like sardines, corn beef and many others are concerned.

For instance, the rise in cases of some serious diseases such as cancer, diabetes, typhoid, cholera, diarrhoea, botuslim, listeriosis and hepatitis ‘A’ is gradually being traced to the indiscriminate consumption of these edibles that carelessly dot every available space in the metropolis.

Disturbing mews from LASUTH

Findings in Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) revealed an increase in unwholesome food-induced ailments. Saturday Tribune’s checks showed that there are more reported cases of ailments induced by these edibles in recent time.

A top medical staff of the hospital, who did not want her name in print because she had no authority to speak with the media on such issues, confirmed the spike and added that such careless dietary habit could be linked to the increase in ailments like Hepatitis ‘A’, typhoid fever, cholera, food poisoning and gastroenteritis (stomach flow) being recorded in the hospital.

According to the medical officer, the hospital has been recording increase in cases of terminal diseases like cancers and adrenal failure, also traced to poor dietary habits. More worrisome, according to the medical expert, is the fact that juveniles are not spared.

“The cases are increasing on a daily basis in the hospital. Evidence has proved that they are becoming more rampant and even children are not spared. In some cases, we are seeing a higher number of cases involving children than even adults,” the officer declared.

We almost lost our lives –Victims

Moses Alao, a plumber residing in the Akowonjo-Egbeda area of the metropolis would not forget in a hurry, an experience he once had while consuming some of these products.

Describing the experience as “very unpalatable,” the middle-aged plumber said he bought a bottled drink on his way home from work some time ago and nearly paid the supreme price for his action.

According to him, not quite 10 minutes after consuming the drink, he developed a serious stomach upset. He was told by the nurse on duty that the drink had been subjected to long hours of exposure to sunlight which made it become highly gaseous and subsequently disrupted his system.

Ebuka shared a similar experience with Saturday Tribune. Ebuka, who operates a shop at Egbeda Market, narrated the health issues that confronted him after consuming fufu, a local delicacy common in the south-western part of the country.

He recounted that trouble started after downing two wraps of fufu on display in Egbeda Market. Unknown to him, apart from being of an old stock, the fufu had been subjected to direct contact from the scorching sun, dust and flies; since it was openly displayed. The Egbeda-based businessman spent three days in the hospital due to severe diarrhea he suffered for consuming the exposed fufu.

Curiously, despite all these horrendous stories, some Lagosians are unperturbed and adamant. For instance, Lamidi, a commercial motorcyclist, also known as okada, who plies his trade between Egbeda and Dopemu Roundabout in Lagos, believes his profession makes eating out imperative for him.

“I leave home as early as six o’clock in the morning to scout for passengers. As expected, I go to any available cafeteria to eat my choice food,” he told Saturday Tribune. Interestingly, his day is never complete without a can of Malt drink, which he buys at the close of work from hawkers around.

Guilty or not?

But in spite of all these, some Lagosians are still very cautious as regards what goes into their mouths.

Mrs Atinuke Alabi, a staff nurse at the Gbagada General Hospital, Lagos, for instance, is one of them. She told Saturday Tribune that she rarely bought any cooked food or roasted meat from outside let alone eat them.

“I also don’t encourage my children to buy food by the road side to take to school. Instead, I prepare foods for them or they buy from school canteens,” she added. According to her, she would simply not touch any of edibles with the longest of spoons; since she’s simply not comfortable eating them.

“And this is because most times, they prepare those foods under unhygienic conditions and with adulterated products. Many of them use rotten pepper and tomatoes or adulterated vegetable (or red) oil to prepare their foods. Some even expose them to dust and flies after preparation, and that is why cases of people going down with stomach trouble and other related health challenges are on the increase today. So, I don’t buy cooked foods just anyhow,” she stressed.

On carbonated foods and drinks, including water and even drugs which have been exposed to direct sunlight, Mrs Alabi said she doesn’t buy such items. “I know consuming such items is injurious to health. The effect may take a while to manifest but it will surely do and in a terrible way,” Mrs Alabi, said. She, however, admitted that she buys tin tomatoes.

Kayode Ajibade, Administrative Manager, Gendon Nigeria Limited, shared the same sentiments with Mrs Alabi. He also does not buy and consume foods and drinks anyhow. Although he buys fried edibles, he always insists such items are prepared in his presence.

“I buy fried foods such as beancake, yam, puff’-puff, potato and plantain only when they are fried in my presence. I don’t buy the ones already fried and displayed openly. I don’t also buy kulikuli. I believe they are not hygienic for consumption,” he noted.

For roasted meat and chicken, especially suya of any brand and even peeled fruits such as pineapple and water melon, Mr Ajibade said he equally believed that most times, such meat and fruits are not well cooked or taken care of  before they are put up for sale.

“Most of these sellers are interested in profit and not the nutritional benefits the items will provide for those buying them,” he said. The father of four, however, has a different engagement rule for carbonated foods as well as drinks. He is not too cautious of drinks in plastics or in tins. “What I only do concerning this is to go for the popular brands, and the ones that have the best of taste,” he stated.

Gradual, painful death

Unfortunately, many Lagosians are in Lamidi’s shoes. While they agree consumption of these badly displayed edibles might have negative implications, they believe they are left with no choice, since the time to settle down to proper cooking is simply not there, by their calculations.

But medical finding is comparing this habit to sitting on a ticking time bomb.

A former national president of the Nutrition Society of Nigeria (NSN), Professor Tola Atinmo, said he believed that the implications of such actions are serious. According to the professor of Human Nutrition, University of Ibadan, those who indulge in such habits are only dying by installment.

“There are serious health implications in consuming those food items. It is simply unwholesome. People consuming them are killing themselves gradually. The future is very bleak for them. They will develop cancer. They will develop cardiovascular problems. They will also have kidney problem. And it will be too late to reverse it when they are down. That is the fact. People should totally avoid them and not consume them at all. They are simply not healthy for the body,” the university don stated.

Explaining the health implications of consuming  carbonated foods and drinks, including the ones put under direct sunlight, he stated that by doing that, some nutrients of such foods and drinks would have been lost and once that happens, such products will no longer be beneficial to the body.

“It is not a good practice. People should not expose products that should be kept in cool places to direct sunlight. The problem we have as a country is that everybody just does whatever they like without considering the negative effects of such actions on others. So, this kind of practice should be checked by local government councils. They are the ones that should monitor the system at this level and ensure that people comply with standard,” he stated.

He also stressed the need for the Federal Government, through its relevant regulatory agencies, to quickly address the issue because of the huge implications it has for people’s health and the nation’s economy.

“Regulators are not doing their bit to check the type of oil, for example, they are using to prepare some of these edibles and other things that go into their preparations. This is where we need the government to enforce legislations that prevent the unwholesome practice.

“You can’t just wake up and start frying yam, plantain, akara, puff-puff and all that by the roadside and bus stops and every other unhygienic environment and expect people to patronise you. It is simply absurd. And it means this country is not getting it right,” he stated.

FAO raises the alarm

On what nutritionists are doing as an association to address the problem, he said the association was pressuring the government to appreciate that good nutrition, and not just food, is essential to having a healthy body.

“We are trying to let the government know that when you are healthy, you will be able to do well in your economic and other lawful engagements. There is a National Council of Nutrition set up by the Federal Government and domiciled in the office of the vice president of the country. The agency is yet to make any meaningful impact and that is the home truth,” Professor Atinmo added.

He said the association would continue to call on the government to wake up and enforce proper legislation through lawmakers across tiers of government.

• Lagos and Kano [L&K] — Why did it take so long?

“It is very important. They need to ensure that laws in this regard are enforced. That is part of what we are doing. And it is high time we checked all these unwholesome practices in our society because they portend serious danger to our living and economy,” the professor of Nutrition stated.

Also corroborating the above claim, the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), in a recent study, raised the alarm over what it described as the worrisome levels of contamination of foods in Lagos and Kano states. The study tagged “Total Diet,” which was carried out in two major Nigerian cities, Lagos and Kano, revealed various levels of contamination of foods at the point of consumption.

Speaking at an event jointly organised by the Federal Ministry of Health and its agriculture counterpart to mark 2019 World Food Safety Day in Abuja, the Country Representative, FAO in Nigeria, Suffyan Koruna, said street foods were now being consumed more than ever before, adding that Nigerians eat at least one meal out of home in restaurants, bukas and other food vendors.

The FAO country representative, who was represented by Mr Alphonsus Onwuemeka, said the organisation conducted a diet study in Lagos and Kano and discovered rampant unsafe food consumption.

“A Total Diet Study carried out in Lagos and Kano states showed worrisome levels of contamination of foods at the points of consumption with aflatoxins, mycotoxins, heavy metals such as lead and pesticide residues. This should re-awaken Nigeria to the looming health challenges and economic losses that could result from a lack of attention to food safety,” Onwuemeka added.

Customers demand for expired goods –Sellers

Interestingly, some of the people who trade in these types of edibles seem to be at a loss as to how best to preserve their wares before they get to the final consumer, while some would rather attribute this to lack of basic amenities in the country.

Mrs Akinsanmi who operates a frozen food shop explained that preservation of such edibles poses a huge challenge to sellers of frozen foods in the metropolis.

“Preservation of frozen foods poses a huge challenge to sellers in this country since it requires consistent power supply, which is never available,” she said. While extricating herself from such practice, she explained that some frozen food sellers intentionally sell frozen chicken, turkey and fish that are not in good shape to unsuspecting consumers, while some sell at a reduced rate to customers that are aware that the edibles are on the verge of expiration. “I don’t blame them because it is a huge loss on their part if they do not sell these frozen foods. Although I don’t encourage deceit, most of these sellers and even customers are aware of the condition of the goods before they exchange hands,” she stated.

On how she prevents being among this category, she explained that she learnt her lessons in a bitter way.

“When I started my business, I ran into a huge loss because I overstocked my goods and was unfortunate to have lots of goods in my hands when there was power failure for weeks in my area.

“My generator couldn’t keep up with the demands of consistently powering three freezers at a go. That made it difficult to keep the frozen foods in top conditions. Before I knew it, more than half of my goods were spoilt beyond consumption. If not for my doggedness, I would have been out of business. Since then, I learnt to stock my shop in smaller quantities at a go,” she stated.

However, in open stalls, there seems to be no regard for preservation of frozen foods as it is openly displayed on trays for customers to have a view of the good, which if not sold that day, would be returned to the cold room as unsold and later sold back to these sellers at a cheaper rate. These are called “returns.”

Speaking on the dangers of selling returns to consumers, Mama Bisi seems unperturbed that the frozen food might contain bacteria that are unhealthy for consumption. Mama Bisi  xplained that since the food will be cooked before eating, any manner of bacteria would  have been killed before consumption.

She, however, explained that most people that buy “returns” know what they are buying and even request for it because it is cheaper than going for fresher ones.

“This has been the practice for long. Those who buy it can’t complain they are cheated neither can they complain that they are deceived,” she argued.

While the preservation of frozen foods is well known, even if not observed, Saturday Tribune observed that same could not be said of fruit sellers. They seem not aware of how best to preserve their goods to prevent them from going bad. What they do is to try as much as possible to sell off their goods while they are still in good conditions. But when they get rotten beyond consumption, they dispose them.

LGs are liable –CPC

The Public Relations Officer of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Council (FCCPC), Mr Ondaje Ijagwu, would rather attribute this to the failure of the local government system.

According to him, this third tier of government should have been the one to call those people to order if the system was functioning well. He, however, made known, the agency’s plans to commence sensitisation programmes aimed at educating both the sellers and consumers of such unwholesome foods with the objective of emphasising the implications of selling or consuming such products.

“Yes, our mandate covers those things. We contemplated banning the act of keeping drinks in plastic bottles under the sun. But we reasoned that we have to educate the people on the danger of the act before placing a ban. Educating the people, however, requires huge resources

“Roadside sale of food under unkempt conditions has become rampant due to the failure of the local government system. Hygiene is an essential part of the work of local government health workers. But that has been abandoned. We started a street vended food campaign but that, too, requires mobilising huge funds due to the size of Nigeria,” the FCCPC’s spokesman added.

We are handling the menace –Govt

Speaking with Saturday Tribune, Director, Public Affairs Unit, Ministry of Health, Lagos State, Mr Tubosun Ogunbanwo, explained that the state government was not folding its arms concerning the development.

The new spokesman for the ministry disclosed that the state government had set up an agency with a statutory function of checking the activities of such merchants of unwholesome edibles in the state. “There is an agency in charge of that. Their job is to check unwholesome processed foods and others that you have just talked about,” he said.