Action sought against sellers of substandard food items

MARDAN: A large number of registered and unregistered traders have opened small factories where they prepare unhygienic food items like crisps, chips and other low quality sweets. Most of the items are sold to children aged 4 to 12 years.

According to doctors, these items severely affected the health of the children and caused stomach related diseases including piles, gastritis, gastroparesis and diarrhea. The doctors added that the use of the substandard food caused helicobacter pylori infection and various diseases among children.

It may be noted that doctors even diagnosed diabetes among the children due to consumption of low quality sweets which contained substandard ingredients. The doctors said that the sample of these items may be checked with local labs for further details.

The pediatricians said that parents should not allow their children to consume such low quality sweets and chips as it would create health problems for them. Some parents said that when they took their children to the doctor for treatment, they were told to stop the children from eating these things.

However, the parents expressed their inability to prevent the children from using such items, saying that these were openly available at the corner shops in the streets and near the schools.

They asked the food authorities and district administration to take action against the units manufacturing substandard food items, including toffees and candies. The people in Mardan asked the chief minister and other authorities to take action against the people selling substandard food and save the children from falling ill.