Parents pack clinics to test children's kidneys
Updated: 2008-09-24 07:37
By Louise Ho(HK Edition)
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More food products were found to contain melamine yesterday as more than a thousand parents took their children to newly opened government clinics offering services to check for kidney stones.
Melamine was detected in the popular White Rabbit Creamy Candy and Four Seas strawberry-flavored cake, the Centre for Food Safety announced yesterday.
The creamy candy from Shanghai and the cake from Hong Kong were the only two products contaminated by melamine in the newest batch of 71 samples.
The amount of melamine found in the creamy candy (4.6 parts per million) and the cake (6.1 parts per million) far exceeded the maximum concentration limit of 2.5 parts per million mandated by the new Harmful Substances in Food (Amendment) Regulation 2008.
The regulation came into effect yesterday to limit the use of melamine in food.
A spokesman for the center said a 3-year-old child eating 130 pieces of that candy or 16 pieces of the cake would exceed tolerable daily intake levels.
As the samples were collected before the amendment regulation took effect, the spokesman said no prosecution would be taken.
The center has already asked retailers and importers to recall the products.
Two cases of renal stones found in children were reported yesterday, bringing the total to four cases in Hong Kong.
A spokesman for the Centre for Health Protection said the two new cases involved two boys - aged 29 months and 9 years - who live on the mainland and had consumed melamine-tainted milk products.
Both boys were listed in stable condition yesterday.
Meanwhile, 1,328 children were checked yesterday at the Hospital Authority's 18 designated clinics, and 365 children went to the seven special assessment centers.
Starting yesterday, the designated clinics and assessment centers offered free services to children under 12 who consumed the tainted milk products.
After visiting the Yau Ma Tei Jockey Club General Outpatient Clinic, Secretary for Food and Health York Chow said they would assess whether to expand their services in some districts.
The quota has already increased in Northern District and Kwun Tong because there is higher demand for the service there.
Chow admitted that the government will need to strengthen laws on product recalls.
Amending current laws or introducing new ones, he said, will likely be reviewed in the new legislative year.
Chief Executive Donald Tsang said a task force will be set up to make long-term plans to look after Hong Kong babies who live on the mainland and come to Hong Kong for medical treatment.
The task force would maintain close contact with mainland authorities on the range of products contaminated by melamine.
Tsang said that not many Hong Kong children have consumed tainted milk products, and he was confident that the government can contain the situation.
At the Yau Ma Tei Jockey Club General Outpatient Clinic, parents had their children's kidneys checked and said they were happy with the service.
Mrs Ng said she was worried because her 1-year-old son consumed four packages of Sanlu milk powder last year.
She said her child's urine was cloudy but she didn't know if anything was wrong.
"I hope the test will give me peace of mind," she said.
She was satisfied with the service at the hospital, as the test took her less than half an hour.
(HK Edition 09/24/2008 page1)