Eating Hot Foods On Melamine Dishes Increases Risk Of Kidney Stones

Date: Jan-24-2013Eating Hot Foods On Melamine Dishes Increases Risk Of Kidney Stones

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Main Category: Urology / Nephrology

Article Date: 24 Jan 2013 - 0:00 PST

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Eating Hot Foods On Melamine Dishes Increases Risk Of Kidney Stones


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Eating hot foods on melamine dishes increases the risk of developing kidney stones.

The finding came from a new study conducted by Taiwanese researchers and was published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.

The researchers discovered that the amount of melamine we are exposed to increases with hot temperatures, therefore, the chance of developing kidney stones rises.

The team, led by Chia-Fang Wu, M.S., Ph.D., of Kaohsiung Medical University, Taiwan, performed a crossover investigation of consumption of noodle soup in melamine bowls and total melamine excretion in urine.

According to background information in the report, a constant exposure to low doses of melamine may be linked to urolithiasis (urinary system stones) in kids and adults.

A previous report demonstrated that there was an increase in the number of children experiencing urinary stones due to melamine-tainted formula.

There were twelve healthy people, six were males and six were females, who took part in the research. The 12 participants were split up into 2 groups:
one group ate 500 ml of hot noodle soup in melamine bowls
the other group ate soup in ceramic bowls

Twelve hours after the subjects consumed the soup, they were asked to give samples of their urine.

After a "three-week washout", the group who ate from the ceramic bowls ate from the melamine bowls and the group who ate from the melamine bowls ate from the ceramic bowls.

The participants were asked to give urine samples a second time so that the researchers could compare.

The results showed that total melamine excretion in urine for 12 hours was 8.35 micrograms in melamine bowls and total melamine excretion in urine for 12 hours was 1.31 micrograms in ceramic bowls.

The scientists concluded:

"Melamine tableware may release large amounts of melamine when used to serve high-temperature foods. The amount of melamine released into food and beverages from melamine tableware varies by brand, so the results of this study of one brand may not be generalized to other brands.

Although the clinical significance of what levels of urinary melamine concentration has not yet been established, the consequences of long-term melamine exposure still should be of concern."

The research received support from the National Science Council, the Taiwan National Health Research Institutes, and Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital.

Written by Sarah Glynn

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