Roadside grown sukuma wiki can be dangerous
Nov 17, 2003
Sukuma wiki is the name given to Kale in Kenya. This leafy green vegetable is quite cheap. Many Kenyans frequently complement the staple food Ugali (mealie marsh) with it. Recent findings indicate that this much-treasured leafy vegetable could be dangerous to human health, particularly if grown in u
By Jemaiyu Chabeda
Sukuma wiki is the name given to Kale in Kenya. This leafy green vegetable is quite cheap. Many Kenyans frequently complement the staple food Ugali (mealie marsh) with it. Recent findings indicate that this much-treasured leafy vegetable could be dangerous to human health, particularly if grown in urban areas or along the roadside. Dr. Makokha of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology attests to this worrying trend. Through support by UNEP he has been able to conduct a research on lead levels in sukuma wiki grown along highways and that grown far from them.
Findings show high lead levels in urban areas in both soil and on vegetables when compared to lead contamination from motor vehicles fumes.
lead concentrations in soils of Nairobi Central Business District are on average 250,000 micro-grams per kilograms. In Thika, about 40kilometres from Nairobi, they are around 140,000 micrograms per kilograms whereas in the rural town of Ithanga, lead levels are negligible. Samples of this popular vegetable, from stalls in Nairobi’s Central Business district (NCBD), show lead concentrations of about 5,000 micrograms per kilogram, which is substantially above the WHO limit of 3000 micrograms per kilogram.
Sukuma wiki from the NCBD, is therefore safe for human consumption only if it has been washed thoroughly,to remove lead deposits from the leaves.
lead can accumulate in any vegetable that is grown in urban areas or along the roadside. This is because lead from motor vehicle exhaust fumes settles on the vegetables and the soil. It is not only in Africa that lead has been found to pose a serious threat to life. Several tests done at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in America prove that lead is toxic to multiple organ systems even at low levels.
The most vulnerable is the unborn child (foetus) and infants. The nervous system of both is susceptible to lead which can cross from the placenta and penetrate the blood drain barrier.
The consequences are loss of intelligence and disruption of behavior and because the brain has little capacity for repair, these effects are permanent and untreatable.
However, there is reason for Kenyans to sustain their favorite veggie. This message seemed to resonate in the speech by Klaus Toepfer, executive director UNEP at a Clean Fuels Initiative event held at Gilgil last Friday.
“Air quality is a serious health issue in many parts of the world and removal of lead from gasoline can make a real difference to the local environment†he said. Present also was Sir Philip Watts, the chairman of the committee of managing directors of Royal Dutch/Shell group.
The Clean Fuels Initiative arose from an international effort to phase lead out of petrol. The move accelerated after the issue got backing at last year’s World Summit on Sustainable development (WSSD). There is also overwhelming support from WHO, a leader in the global effort to protect Children’s health.
Sir Watts of Shell group pledged to provide direct support to the phase out of lead by 2005-a goal arrived at during the Dakar declaration of June 2002. “As the largest marketer of oil products across Africa with 2,800 service stations and an interest in six refineries, we are committed to working with others to phase out lead and reduce sulfur in diesel†he said.
Sukuma wiki continues to be recommended by nutritionists. Dr Brigitte Monda, a health expert in Kenya explains that Sukuma wiki, like other members of the cabbage family, is a good source of vitamins and is rich in phytochemicals, including sulforaphane and indoles.
This may protect against cancer.
Levels of beta-carotene and other nutrients in leafy greens appear to be linked to the presence of chlorophyll. The green pigment produced by photosynthesis signals that this green vegetable (unlike the paler cabbage-family cousins) is also rich in beta-carotene. Sukuma wiki has a substantial mineral content providing manganese as well as some iron, calcium, and potassium.
There’s antioxidant vitamin E in the leaves as well.
All said and done, countries have to phase out lead in petrol to protect the environment. Unleaded petrol costs the same price as leaded.
It also does not affect the car engine. This move will not only protect the lives of unborn children but also prevent an environmental hazard. Sukuma wiki is here to stay, would it not be easier to weed lead out?
Sukuma wiki is the name given to Kale in Kenya. This leafy green vegetable is quite cheap. Many Kenyans frequently complement the staple food Ugali (mealie marsh) with it. Recent findings indicate that this much-treasured leafy vegetable could be dangerous to human health, particularly if grown in urban areas or along the roadside. Dr. Makokha of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology attests to this worrying trend. Through support by UNEP he has been able to conduct a research on lead levels in sukuma wiki grown along highways and that grown far from them.
Findings show high lead levels in urban areas in both soil and on vegetables when compared to lead contamination from motor vehicles fumes.
lead concentrations in soils of Nairobi Central Business District are on average 250,000 micro-grams per kilograms. In Thika, about 40kilometres from Nairobi, they are around 140,000 micrograms per kilograms whereas in the rural town of Ithanga, lead levels are negligible. Samples of this popular vegetable, from stalls in Nairobi’s Central Business district (NCBD), show lead concentrations of about 5,000 micrograms per kilogram, which is substantially above the WHO limit of 3000 micrograms per kilogram.
Sukuma wiki from the NCBD, is therefore safe for human consumption only if it has been washed thoroughly,to remove lead deposits from the leaves.
lead can accumulate in any vegetable that is grown in urban areas or along the roadside. This is because lead from motor vehicle exhaust fumes settles on the vegetables and the soil. It is not only in Africa that lead has been found to pose a serious threat to life. Several tests done at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in America prove that lead is toxic to multiple organ systems even at low levels.
The most vulnerable is the unborn child (foetus) and infants. The nervous system of both is susceptible to lead which can cross from the placenta and penetrate the blood drain barrier.
The consequences are loss of intelligence and disruption of behavior and because the brain has little capacity for repair, these effects are permanent and untreatable.
However, there is reason for Kenyans to sustain their favorite veggie. This message seemed to resonate in the speech by Klaus Toepfer, executive director UNEP at a Clean Fuels Initiative event held at Gilgil last Friday.
“Air quality is a serious health issue in many parts of the world and removal of lead from gasoline can make a real difference to the local environment†he said. Present also was Sir Philip Watts, the chairman of the committee of managing directors of Royal Dutch/Shell group.
The Clean Fuels Initiative arose from an international effort to phase lead out of petrol. The move accelerated after the issue got backing at last year’s World Summit on Sustainable development (WSSD). There is also overwhelming support from WHO, a leader in the global effort to protect Children’s health.
Sir Watts of Shell group pledged to provide direct support to the phase out of lead by 2005-a goal arrived at during the Dakar declaration of June 2002. “As the largest marketer of oil products across Africa with 2,800 service stations and an interest in six refineries, we are committed to working with others to phase out lead and reduce sulfur in diesel†he said.
Sukuma wiki continues to be recommended by nutritionists. Dr Brigitte Monda, a health expert in Kenya explains that Sukuma wiki, like other members of the cabbage family, is a good source of vitamins and is rich in phytochemicals, including sulforaphane and indoles.
This may protect against cancer.
Levels of beta-carotene and other nutrients in leafy greens appear to be linked to the presence of chlorophyll. The green pigment produced by photosynthesis signals that this green vegetable (unlike the paler cabbage-family cousins) is also rich in beta-carotene. Sukuma wiki has a substantial mineral content providing manganese as well as some iron, calcium, and potassium.
There’s antioxidant vitamin E in the leaves as well.
All said and done, countries have to phase out lead in petrol to protect the environment. Unleaded petrol costs the same price as leaded.
It also does not affect the car engine. This move will not only protect the lives of unborn children but also prevent an environmental hazard. Sukuma wiki is here to stay, would it not be easier to weed lead out?