Kurma

Health Warning - Unsafe Toothpaste August 26th, 2007 Editor

“Neem Active” brand toothpaste is a popular item in many stores around the world, but Canadian health officials have banned it…

TORONTO: The Canadian health department has advised people against using a Neem toothpaste from India, claiming that it contains high levels of harmful bacteria and a chemical found in antifreeze, which was discovered earlier. Neem Active Toothpaste with Calcium, made by Calcutta Chemical Co Ltd. in India, should not be used, Health Canada warned.

It claimed that ingesting the product could trigger fever, urinary tract infections and gastrointestinal symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhoea and abdominal pain. The health department warning noted that while toothpaste is not meant to be swallowed, young children often do so while brushing their teeth. Children and people with weakened immune systems would be at the highest risk of negative side-effects from using the toothpaste, Health Canada said, adding that Neem Active Toothpaste is not approved for sale in Canada.

“Infants, children and vulnerable populations such as patients hospitalised for severe underlying diseases or with compromised immune systems are more sensitive to these effects. Severe vomiting and diarrhoea could lead to potentially life-threatening dehydration,” it said in a press release. Late last month, Health Canada warned Canadians not to use the toothpaste because it alleged that the product had been found to contain unacceptable levels of diethylene glycol or DEG, used in the making of antifreeze.

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Charles from Miami writes:

Hey Kurma, do you have any vego recipes from Iraq?

My reply:

Hey Charles! Yes I do actually. There are some wonderful sweets in Iraqi cuisine. Here's a nice one. Add a little extra butter if the mixture is too dry.

Iraqi Cardamom-scented Butter Biscuits (Shakar Lemah)

Anyone who enjoys a good shortbread will love these melt-in-the-mouth delights from Iraq. They are exceptionally easy to make. Makes 24 biscuits.

175g (6 ounces) butter
½ cup caster sugar
2½ cups plain flour
1 teaspoon ground cardamom seeds
icing sugar for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 160° C / 325° F.

Cream the butter with the caster sugar in a food processor. Add the flour and cardamom, and process to form a soft dough.

Roll the mixture into 24 walnut sized balls. Flatten them slightly. Arrange them on baking sheets lined with baking paper about 2cm apart. If you like, press them gently with the flat underside of fork tines to slightly flatten them and mark them with decorative lines.

Bake for about 25 minutes. They will hardly darken, and will appear undercooked, but they will firm up when they cool.

Serve: remove from the paper only when they have hardened, and dredge them in icing sugar.

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