Question

Metanil yellow is an adulterant of
(a)Honey
(b)Turmeric powder
(c)Sweets
(d)Both B and C

Answer 1

Hint An adulterant is a substance that is used in food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, etc which artificially enhances the product but compromises the safety of the said substance. An adulterant is a substance that is not allowed to be present in things legally.

Complete Answer:
Metanil yellow is an adulterant of both turmeric powder and sweets. Turmeric is used for its medicinal values which are mainly due to the presence of curcumin (diferuloylmethane). Curcumin has many medicinal properties such as anti-inflammatory, anticarcinogenic, antioxidant, and wound-healing effects. Turmeric powder and sweets are adulterated with metanil yellow in order to enhance their yellow color. Such adulteration is quite economical due to the high demand for turmeric powder. But studies have shown that metanil yellow is neurotoxic and hepatotoxic thus, should be avoided at all costs.

Additional information:
Metanil yellow is a dye which belongs to the azo compounds. It is used as a pH indicator as it changes color from red to yellow between pH 1.2 and 2.3.
It is an unpermitted food dye because of its toxic effects but it is still used in turmeric powder and arhar dal as it imparts a bright yellow color to the food.
It has been observed that long-term consumption of Metanil yellow causes permanent damage to the brain and nervous system, cancer, paralysis, skin allergy, etc.
The presence of Metanil yellow in food can be checked by a simple test. In this test, few drops of HCl are added to the food and if it turns pink it means Metanil yellow is present in it.

So, the correct option is ‘Both B and C’.

Note:
-The Prevention of Food Adulteration Act in 1954 was introduced by the government to protect people from adulterated food.
-Organizations like Food Products Order (FPO) and Indian Standards Institute (ISI) issue certificates stating the purity of the products.
-Hepatotoxicity is referred to as liver damage that happens due to the chemical drugs taken by the body. The liver is the most affected because it is the detoxification center of the body.