Why are veterinary drugs often found in eggs? Can we still eat them safely?

"Amantadine" was detected in eggs. What is this?

Why are veterinary drugs often found in eggs? Can we still eat them safely?

Eggs are "too common food" in life. They are well-known to everyone and are eaten frequently. Whenever there is "hot news about eggs", the circle of friends and major websites have already "exploded". Not long ago, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued an announcement on its official website that 17 batches of food failed to pass the inspection, including "farm eggs" produced by a certain agricultural and sideline products trading company in Hunan. The "amantadine" in this egg exceeded the standard. This matter has attracted widespread attention. Through this article, we will help you "understand the principle and eat eggs safely."

What is amantadine?

Four characters make up a "word you don't often hear". "Amantadine" is a type of "antiviral drug" and the earliest antiviral drug used to inhibit influenza virus. It has a good inhibitory effect on influenza virus. It is worth noting that the safety and efficacy of this drug for adult patients are widely recognized, but its therapeutic dose is close to the dose that produces side effects. For those elderly patients or patients with kidney disease and chronic cardiopulmonary disease, the dosing plan and dosage are difficult to control and determine, so this drug has not yet been promoted in clinical practice.

However, this substance can enter the body through the food chain in the form of "drug residues" in animal-derived foods. Once ingested frequently and in large quantities, it can cause trouble to the body, produce neurotoxicity, enhance the drug resistance of the influenza virus, induce it to mutate, and affect the health of the body.

As early as 2005, my country's Ministry of Agriculture explicitly required the cessation of production, operation and use of substances such as adamantane and rimantadine. The "Announcement No. 560 of the Ministry of Agriculture of the People's Republic of China" issued in 2005 also clearly pointed out that the use of human antiviral drugs such as adamantane for veterinary use lacks scientific norms and safe and effective experimental data. Their use in animal viral diseases not only brings adverse consequences to animal disease control, but also affects the implementation of national animal disease prevention and control policies.

Why is amantadine always detected in eggs?

In fact, regular agricultural and animal husbandry companies have long stopped producing veterinary antiviral drugs containing adamantane; companies with larger scale and better quarantine mechanisms are less likely to have problems such as abuse of veterinary drugs and excessive animal residues. However, individual chicken farmers and people who raise free-range eggs at home are still very blind. They have no professional guidance and face difficulties in supervision. In addition, there is no more perfect alternative to antiviral drugs, so this kind of thing happens many times.

Why do chicken farmers use amantadine?

First, adamantane previously had an "antiviral" effect in veterinary medicine, such as in the treatment of animal diseases such as avian influenza and infectious bronchitis, and had certain application value.

Secondly, adamantane has a high cost-effectiveness (cheap), and is more recognized by chicken farmers. Whether it is mild influenza or highly pathogenic avian influenza, drugs are needed to treat chickens (animals).

Third, there is currently no better drug to replace adamantane, and small-scale farmers themselves lack the necessary knowledge and technical guidance.

The nutritional value of free range eggs and ordinary eggs is almost the same, but they are less safe:

Comparing the content of various nutrients, other major nutrients (protein, amino acids, iron, calcium, phosphorus, etc.) are basically the same, except that the fat content of free range eggs is about 1% higher than that of ordinary eggs, and the cholesterol content is also slightly higher. It is worth noting that the vitamin and mineral content of eggs produced on a large scale in chicken farms is slightly higher than that of free range eggs, which is related to the more sufficient nutrients provided in the feed.

On the contrary, due to the uncertainty of the "chicken farming environment" (sanitation, epidemic prevention, disinfection, etc.), free-range eggs are more likely to be infected with bacteria than ordinary eggs, such as Salmonella and Listeria, which you often hear about, and can easily increase the risk of food poisoning in humans. In addition, the food that free-range chickens eat is more diverse, which makes them more susceptible to infection with pathogenic bacteria, pesticides, dioxins and other harmful substances, which is also one of the reasons why they are less safe.

In other words, free-range eggs are not very nutritious, although they are very expensive; free-range eggs are not very safe, although they are delicious (and fragrant).

"Florfenicol" should also not be detected:

Similar to adamantane, florfenicol has also appeared many times in the "notice of non-compliance with regulations". It is a common broad-spectrum antibiotic (an animal-specific antibacterial drug approved for use by the Ministry of Agriculture). It is mainly used for bacterial diseases of pigs, fish and chickens caused by sensitive bacteria.

However, the "Maximum Residue Limits of Veterinary Drugs in Animal Food" (Ministry of Agriculture Announcement No. 235) clearly stipulates that florfenicol is "banned" in laying hens, which means that it "must not be detected in eggs."

If you consume "foods containing excessive amounts of florfenicol" for a long time and in large quantities, it can easily lead to problems such as aplastic anemia and granulocytopenia in the human body, and can also induce problems such as gray syndrome in newborns and premature infants.

In addition to "amantadine" and "florfenicol", there are also "antibacterial drugs" such as "ofloxacin". These substances have been reported in multiple egg inspections in various places, and all of them have violations of "non-compliance with national food safety standards".

What is “veterinary drug residue”?

When it comes to "veterinary drug residues", you should have a basic understanding. Veterinary drug residues are mainly caused by the abuse or overuse of veterinary drugs or even banned drugs in the process of animal breeding in order to improve quality and yield.

These veterinary drugs are generally not completely metabolized and therefore accumulate in the animal (animal products). When humans eat animal foods, they accumulate in the body through the food chain, increasing the risk of allergies, food poisoning, and sometimes even genetic or chromosomal abnormalities.

How should we view this matter?

Compared with "food nutrition", "food safety" is more important, so you can't be "careless" when buying food, and you should buy food from "formal and qualified places".

When it comes to substances such as amantadine and florfenicol, we should not panic too much and directly "reject" a certain food. The "dose" of any substance should be limited when it comes to toxicity. Only excessive use will pose a threat.

Free range eggs are not excellent; free range chickens are not magical; there is no need to pursue sincerity. Eating safe and hygienic food is the key.

Buy eggs, eat eggs, smart people do this:

Choose where to buy eggs:

When purchasing eggs and other foods offline, please go to large, regular supermarkets or "qualified farmers' markets" to ensure a higher level of safety and prevent being cheated.

When buying eggs and other food online, you should choose a "formal online shopping platform" to buy food produced by "well-known manufacturers (brands)". The quality inspection mechanism is complete and the products are more reliable.

For safety reasons, it is not recommended to buy "eggs sold on the roadside", "eggs sold by rural villagers", or "eggs that are too cheap" as they pose higher safety risks.

Eating in moderation is healthier:

The 2016 edition of the Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents recommends that, on the basis of normal intake of other foods (meat, fish, shrimp, and milk), it is best not to eat more than 7 eggs per week. Specifically, it is recommended that normal people eat 1 egg per day, and for children, pregnant women, breastfeeding women and other people with higher protein needs, it is recommended to eat 1-2 eggs per day.

Eat the whole egg (yolk + white) to avoid waste:

Reject rumors. "Egg yolk" is very good and has nothing to do with disease. When eating eggs, egg white + egg white are the best choices. For safety and nutrient absorption, do not eat raw eggs, no matter how "magical" the rumors you hear are.

Whenever a "new term" appears, it always triggers a heated discussion, especially for "foods related to health". Amantadine and florfenicol are not terrible, but they are threatening to the body and need to be treated with "rationality + caution". Buy safe and hygienic eggs, get comprehensive and high-quality nutrition, and your life will be happier. An egg, a delicacy, a "set" of nutrition, I hope you can get safety and happiness from eggs.