“深海魚”多吃有益?! 還是少吃為妙?! <一>

很多醫學研究証實，多吃深海魚有助減低患上心血管病的風險，專家更指出每周進食三餐魚肉，可減低慢性疾病的死亡率達25%。然而，很多魚都含水銀，常吃大量深海魚，便有機會攝取過量水銀，長遠可引致慢性中毒。那究竟深海魚是多吃有益，還是少吃為妙呢? 又究竟吃多少份量及吃那些品種才能既獲得其中的好處，又可避免攝取過量水銀?

多吃有益?!

吃魚可減低患慢性病的死亡風險，與其脂肪含量較牛肉和豬肉等紅肉低，及蘊含豐富奧米加-3脂肪酸有關。1安士(約28.4克)的魚肉含約1-3克脂肪，當中飽和脂肪只佔其總脂肪酸的25至30%(註: 飽和脂肪會增加人體內“壞”膽固醇，增加患心臟病的風險)，相比紅肉一般飽和脂肪酸的含量可達50%或以上，大大降低日後患心血管病的機會。此外，奧米加-3脂肪酸如EPA具抗炎功效，可減低血管因發炎而堵塞的機會; 幫助膽固醇代謝，降低壞膽固醇的水平; 其中DHA則對腦及視網膜健康及發展有莫大裨益。

少吃為妙?!

然而，曾有由美國獨立組織GotMercury.Org的調查發現，在洛杉磯出售的吞拿魚壽司，其水銀含量較美國食物及藥物管理局(FDA)建議的高出逾八成，部份樣本更達不適宜食用的水平，實在令一眾嗜魚之人卻步。水銀天然存在於土壤、岩石和煤炭中，從燃煤發電廠和其他來源進入空氣，再進入水中，小魚因吃浮游生物而吸入水銀，而水銀會積聚於小魚的體內無法排走，因此，當大魚捕食小魚後，小魚體內的水銀便會積存在大魚體內，故魚的體積愈大，累積的水銀將愈多。攝取太多水銀可致慢性中毒，有機會破壞中樞神經系統，削弱大腦功能。孕婦吸入過量水銀，更會損害胎兒的神經系統，影響胎兒的腦部發展。

那到底應多吃深海魚，還是少吃為妙呢? 請密切留意下一期的月刊，我們將討論如何選擇深海魚及建議的攝取量。

Deep sea fish- helpful or harmful?

It was clinically proven in a number of medical researches that eating deep sea fish can reduce the risk of coronary artery diseases.  Experts have further stated that by eating fish three meals a week, one can reduce the death rate of chronic disease by up to 25%.  However, as mercury can be found in most fish, one risks excessive intake of mercury by eating too much deep sea fish, leading to chronic poisoning.  So, are deep sea fish helpful or harmful?  Which types and what amount of deep sea fish should we eat to maximize the benefits and avoid excessive intake of mercury?

Benefits

Eating fish can reduce the death rate of chronic diseases.  Fish’ fat content is significantly lower than red meat, e.g. beef and pork, and is rich in omega-3 fatty acids.

1 ounce (28.4grams) of fish contains roughly 1-3 grams of fat, of which only 25-30% are saturated fat (NB. Saturated fat can increase the ‘bad’ cholesterol level in a human body and thus, increase the risk of coronary diseases), compared to up to 50% or more in other red meats, thereby reducing the risk of coronary artery diseases.  Furthermore, omega-3 fatty acids, such as EPA possess anti-inflammatory character, which can reduce the risk of blood vessel blockage caused by inflammatory; help cholesterol metabolism and lower the ‘bad’ cholesterol level; while DHA is beneficial to the retina and brain’s health and development.

Harm

The independent US organization, GotMercury.Org, reported that the Tuna sushi samples found in Los Angeles contains mercury levels that are 80% higher than the FDA recommendation, with some sample not even suitable for human consumption, raising concerns amongst fish lovers.  Mercury is an element that can be found naturally in soil, rocks and coal, and passed into water through Coal-fired power plants and other sources. Fishes take in mercury through eating planktons, and the mercury cannot be passed away in their body.  Therefore, when the deep sea fish ate the small fishes, the mercury stored in the small fishes would be accumulated in the huge fish body.  Larger the fish, higher the mercury level.  Excessive intake of mercury can cause chronic poisoning, and potentially damage the central nervous system, causing damage to brain function.  Excessive intake of mercury in pregnant women might also affect the nervous system and brain development of the fetus.

So, is deep sea fish helpful or harmful? Stay tune to our next newsletter, where we’ll discuss the issues of how to choose deep sea fish, and the recommended intake level.

Parabens – 護膚品裡最常見的防腐劑

個人護理用品成分標籤上的成分多不勝數。很多成分名稱，常令人看了以後也不明所以。其實只要我們細心閱讀並牢記一下，就能認出幾種特別有害的成分，例如在化妝品及護膚品中最常添加的防腐劑 – 苯甲酸酯類(Parabens)。

Parabens目前很受爭議；它是一種很便宜的人工合成防腐劑，因著卓越的抗菌效能而被廣泛用於化妝品、護膚品及食品。經由皮膚吸收並進入人體後，Parabens會干擾內分泌系統裡雌激素的活動，因此被認為可能與乳癌有關。

日本厚生省更將之認定為可能導致過敏的物質。實驗證明，Parabens會滲透角質層，然後被皮膚所吸收。研究估計，成人每天經由日用品累積吸收的Parabens高達17.76克，而兒童為378毫克。目前個別日用品的Parabens濃度大都符合安全性的，但由於它並不會經體內酵素代謝所分解，所以我們需要注意它於身體內的「累積濃度」。因著種種的使用風險，一直有不少人都強烈主張把Parabens列為個人護理用品的禁用成份。

Parabens 家族

Parabens是一個人工合成防腐劑最常見的一大類，那麼我們應如何認出它的家族成員呢？它的家族成員包括：Ethylparaben、methylparaben等，總之我們只要是記住這些名稱後半部’parabens’，就能把它們一一認清。

Parabens- the most commonly found preservative in skin care

There are countless ingredients in the label of personal care products, and most people have no idea what they are.  Actually, if we spend some time to read the label with care and remember a few points, we can identify a number of particularly harmful substances, such as the most commonly found preservative in cosmetics and skincare products- parabens.

Parabens are currently a very controversial group of substance: on the one hand, they are very cheap synthetic preservative that are highly anti-bacterial, and are commonly used in cosmetics, skincare and food; on the other hand, when parabens enter human body after being absorbed by skin, they can affect the estrogen activities in the endocrine system, thus related to a woman's risk for breast cancer. 

The Ministry of Health in Japan listed parabens as substances that may cause allergies.  It was experimentally proven that parabens can penetrate the stratum corneum and be absorbed by skin.  Research estimates that daily intake of parabens through daily commodity can be as high as 17.76g for adults and 378mg for children.  Although the paraben concentration in most daily commodities meets safety requirements, parabens cannot be decomposed by metabolic enzymes, so we must note its cumulative concentration in our body.  Due to the risks involved in using parabens, many advocate a ban on using parabens in personal care products.

The Parabens family

The parabens family is the most commonly used synthetic preservative, with members such as ethylparaben and methylparaben.  We can easily identify the members of this family by remembering the latter part of their name- ‘paraben’.

濕疹與食物過敏

濕疹是一種香港常見的兒童過敏症，不少家長也為小童的濕疹問題感到非常煩惱。事實上，濕疹除了受遺傳影響，食物過敏亦是其中一項導致兒童濕疹發作的主要環境因素。研究指出，濕疹與食物過敏症皆是由免疫系統失調引起。本港現時約有二十萬兒童患上濕疹，當中約三成病童同時有食物過敏問題；而嚴重濕疹患者中，食物過敏風險更高達七成至九成，可見兒童濕疹與食物過敏症息息相關。

據分析指，目前本港整體兒童食物過敏發病率約百分之五至八，最常見的八種致敏食物為雞蛋、牛奶、甲殼類海產、魚類、小麥、大豆、花生和果仁。專家建議，要舒緩小童的濕疹問題，除了藥物治療，家長亦應了解食物過敏症，透過進行食物過敏測試找出病童的致敏食物，並盡量避免這類食物。

好消息! HK BioTek的Aller-Food Check食物過敏測試在瑞典一項研究中取得第一位!

瑞典的健康網站 Kostkoll 進行了一項延遲性過敏測試的研究，針對五家提供過敏測試的化驗所進行比較。測試的清晰度以及可重覆性，往往影響測試者採用哪家化驗所的決定。

研究人員把兩份相同的血液樣本，以不同的名字編派到相同的化驗所進行測試。當中，三家化驗所化驗相同血液樣本後，竟呈交出不同結果的食物過敏測試報告。研究綜合指出，HK BioTek採用的Aller-Food Check食物過敏測試，是在這次研究中，唯一一個提供可重覆測試結果，同時亦是敏感度最高的。

 Eczema and Food Allergy

Eczema is one of the most common symptoms to food allergy in children.  Dealing with eczema is often a very frustrating and painful experience for both the child and parents.  Eczema can affect people of any age, although the condition is most common in children.  People with eczema often have a family history of the condition or a family history of other allergic conditions, such as asthma or hay fever.  However, heredity may not be the only factor triggering eczema, there is a strong link between patients with food allergy to eczema.  Research has found that both eczema and food allergy are caused by abnormal function of the immune system.

Today there are over 200,000 children in Hong Kong suffering from eczema.  One third of these children have food allergy problems.  The percentage increases to 70 to 90% among the most severe eczema cases.   There is clearly a strong link between food allergy and eczema.

Statistics suggest that there are 5-8% of children in Hong Kong suffering from food allergies today.  The top 8 offending foods include eggs, cow’s milk, crustaceans, fish, wheat, soy, peanuts and nuts.  In order to effectively treat eczema, in addition to applying medication, experts recommend a thorough understanding of your child’s allergic reaction to food or other environmental factors. A food allergy assessment allows you to find a suitable diet for your children, thus relieve the allergic symptoms effectively.

Good News! HK BioTek’s Aller-Food Check Ranked First in Swedish Analysis

The Swedish health and lifestyle website, Kostkoll, recently conducted a comparison of the five food allergy testing (IgG) methods available in the Swedish market. The comparison of these tests focused on two factors:  1) ability to duplicate test results as an indicator of test accuracy;  2) sensitivity of the test.

The comparisons were conducted by sending blood samples to each lab.  Two sets of the same blood sample were sent under two difference names to each company.  Three out of the five companies identified different allergic food items on the first and second test.  Aller-Food Check, which is the test methodology utilized by HK BioTek ranked top among the five methods.  It was the only test that showed completely matching results for the two sample sets, and at the same time, it was also the highest in sensitivity.