Risk of food poisoning when eating "3 no" grilled skewers

On Nguyen Quy Duc, Nhan Hoa, Nguyen Xien, To Huu streets (Hanoi), street vendors selling grilled skewers on the sidewalk are very popular. People buy them to take home or eat them right there. Mobile grilled skewer carts also appear at school gates, markets, and crowded places.

A vendor on Nguyen Quy Duc Street, Thanh Xuan District, Hanoi, said she sells several hundred grilled skewers every day. These foods are fried in hot oil and sold for VND3,000-10,000.

According to Associate Professor Nguyen Thi Lam, former Deputy Director of the National Institute of Nutrition, grilled skewers are popular because they are delicious and cheap. However, this food has a high risk of poisoning. Because grilled skewers are processed by frying in hot oil or grilling on charcoal. In addition, the sellers display them everywhere on the sidewalk, increasing the risk of microbial contamination.

This expert also said that these types of skewers have "3 no's": no expiration date, no origin, no label. Sellers also use re-used frying oils and preservatives to help the product stay fresh and have attractive colors, which pose many potential health risks. In particular, preservatives and unsafe frying oils can also lead to cancer.

In addition, sharing food and drink also increases the risk of infectious diseases such as hepatitis A and HP gastritis bacteria. Therefore, experts recommend that people, especially young people and students, should not eat these foods to avoid getting sick.