Three types of toothpaste found to contain traces of cancer-linked ingredient

[NewWorldRecord]

Three types of toothpaste found to contain traces of cancer-linked ingredient

Toothpaste on sale in Hong Kong made by Colgate, Superdrug and Beverly Hills Formula contains triclosan, a chemical linked to cancer, Consumer Council finds

PUBLISHED : Thursday, 14 August, 2014, 3:09pm
UPDATED : Thursday, 14 August, 2014, 4:50pm

Ernest Kao [email protected]

Consumer Council vice-chairman Philip Leung Kwong-hon announced the findings on Thursday morning. Photo: Edward Wong

Three types of toothpaste sold in Hong Kong have been found to contain traces of triclosan, a chemical linked to cancer, after tests carried out by the Consumer Council.

The council tested 35 toothpastes and found traces in three – Colgate Total Professional Whitening, Totalcare with Fluoride Whitening and Beverly Hills Formula Total Protection Whitening.

Quantities of the chemical – 0.089 per cent, 0.24 per cent and 0.25 per cent – fell within Hong Kong and international safety standards. The European Union set 0.30 per cent as the maximum permitted level.

The results come just days after the Customs Department in Hong Kong launched an investigation into Colgate’s popular Total toothpaste after the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released Colgate documents indicating that it contains the chemical.

Triclosan is not banned in Hong Kong. Council chief executive Gilly Wong Fung-han said there was yet to be any scientific evidence that the drug is hazardous to human health.

“Worried consumers can look at the labelling to see if the toothpaste contains triclosan and choose whether or not to use it,” she said.

A Department of Health spokesman said earlier this week that 13 registered pharmaceutical products being sold in the city contained the chemical as an active ingredient.

Bloomberg reported on Monday that the FDA released 35 pages of documents from Colgate that summarised toxicology studies on triclosan, which is used to stave off gum disease.

A Hong Kong customs spokesman said it would will look into the report, and seek advice from the Department of Health on health concerns.

Meanwhile grocery shoppers have been advised to be alert about prepackaged food falling short of its labelled weight, after a Consumer Council study found 90 per cent weighed less than advertised.

The council last month examined 51 samples of meat, fish, vegetable and fruit bought at various Hong Kong Island retailers and grocers.

The worst case involved a beef steak purchased at an unnamed retailer with a purported net weight of 299.4 grams. The actual measured net weight was 241.9g – a discrepancy of almost 20 per cent.

Council vice-chairman Philip Leung Kwong-hon said traders selling prepackaged goods under any weight other than the actual net weight were in breach of the Weights and Measures Ordinance.

“The incidence … found in this survey is believed to possibly be the tip of the iceberg,” he said.

He urged retailers to sell the weight that they claim and to display unit price and the unit of measurement of a grocery item alongside its selling price.

The results of the survey have been referred to the Customs and Excise Department, which enforces the law, and the Centre for Food Safety, which is responsible for the enforcement of the Food and Drugs Regulations.