DANGER!! Food joints preparing Githeri using Panadol.
For majority of Kenyans, Panadol is a popular painkiller
that contains aspirin and paracetamol.
Revelations at our disposal disclosed that that some unscrupulous
restaurant operators use Panadol to prepare meals that take long to cook,
allegedly to tenderise maize and ‘tough’ legumes such as beans and green grams
and meat so as to save time and fuel. Githeri placed say at 8am to feed up to
50 people, gets ready for serving by noon when this drug is added into the menu.
It is alleged that the drug is first crashed into powder and
sprinkled into the boiling githeri especially when the water starts to boil. After
this, the food is ready within the next two hours and ready to be served.
It has been revealed that the amount of Panadol used for a
particular meal is determined by the amount of food being cooked. For instance,
between 15 and 20 tablets are used for the big sufurias of githeri.
Paracetamol is hazardous if taken in high doses and health
experts say it becomes poisonous when subjected to heat, the reason many
patrons develop a running stomach after enjoying that delicious
plate of this
favourite delicacy.
While consumers of food tenderised with paracetamol may not
experience immediate discomfort, the possibility of long-term side effects
cannot be ruled out such as liver and kidney damage.
Cooked paracetamol and aspirin oozes some lethal salicylic
acid that can cause some life-threatening allergic reactions in the body that
may result to very severe stomach ulcers or even kill the victim.
At this rate, Kenyans may be forced to start carrying their
own food around or eat from home because your favourite restaurant or ‘Mama Pima’ may be killing you slowly. Kenyans
love shortcuts.
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