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7 Things in China That Could Kill You
Apr 12, 2010By Susie Gordon, www.eChinacities.comLiving in China can be dangerous. Whether it’s falling construction equipment, industrial-strength smog, or dodgy food, you need to be on your guard. Here is our guide to the major perils, and some advice on how to avoid them.
Photo: Photocapy
1) Fake peas
Fake peas? Yes. Just when you thought things couldn’t get any stranger, a man has been arrested in Changsha, Hunan Province, for producing fake green peas. The crafty merchant marinated hundreds of kilos of cheap dried snow peas and soy beans in green food colorant mixed with metabisulfite (an ingredient used in bleach) to give them the appearance of peas. Metabisulfate is a known carcinogen, and stops the body absorbing calcium. Great. Apparently this sort of thing has been going on for years, but can’t be declared a “food safety incident” until someone dies. To avoid an OD of metabisulfite, just don’t eat any peas from Hunan Province.
2) Recycled cooking oil
This one has been all over the news recently, thanks to a raft of vomit-inducing photos showing grease wallahs stirring huge, steaming cauldrons of food slurry. The practise of boiling restaurant waste to extract re-usable oil came to light earlier this year when a team from Wuhan Polytechnic University discovered that one in 10 meals in the area were made using recycled cooking oil. The State Food and Drug Administration took the reins and issued warnings to the country’s health bureaus to weed out the vile practise. Aside from being downright disgusting, this re-used oil contains a chemical called aflatoxin which is highly carcinogenic. How to avoid it? Don’t eat street food, and stay away from cheap restaurants where the oil may be used.
3) Falling cranes
The construction boom has claimed countless victims over the years, but one of the saddest incidents has to be the death of five kindergarten pupils who were crushed when a crane fell on their school near Zibo Town, Shandong Province. With so much development taking place across the country, and the less-than-safe construction methods sometimes used (bamboo scaffolding?) you should keep your wits about you when you’re outside. Don’t walk under scaffolds or cranes, and be careful you don’t trip over errant wires or pipes. The Chinese don’t really do compensation, so if you do fall over, you won’t be getting any pay-outs from the local government.
4) Sofa burn
You wouldn’t expect the humble sofa to present many dangers (aside from the possibility of pathological laziness) but couch potatoes take note: a batch of sofas made in China was responsible for two deaths and thousands of injuries in the UK. A Chinese company called Linkwise supplied a batch of leather couches to British stores which were infused with an anti-mould chemical called dimethyl fumarate. And it fumed, alright. People who bought the sofas broke out in horrible rashes and many had to be hospitalized. Two senior citizens died from heart failure caused by the stress. To avoid sofa burn, never buy from Linkwise, and make sure you get the shop assistant to sit down on the sofa before you do.
5) Baijiu binges
We don’t have to warn you about the dangers of baijiu. Just a whiff of the brutal brew is enough to turn the stomach of even the doughtiest drinker. Granted, a shot here and there isn’t going to harm, but if you binge like Japanese sound engineer Moriyama Shiyouta in Guangdong province, you could end up dead. After a hard day of sound engineering, Shiyouta kicked back with a bottle of baijiu, and ended his night (and his life) projectile vomiting through his nose. You have been warned…
6) Bad vapors
China has some of the most polluted air in the world. Thanks to heavy industry and a penchant for cars in cities, smog is a common sight (and smell). Sometimes the sky actually looks yellow, which can’t be good. We’re not convinced of the preventative properties of those face masks that people seem to be fond of, especially ones with Hello Kitty on them, but they might keep out some of the more harmful particles. The masks fitted with carbon filters are more expensive but vastly more effective. Either that, or stay indoors, but that’s hardly practical. Until China bucks its ideas up where pollution is concerned, this is something we’re just going to have to put up with.
7) Marauding tigers
Okay, so it was actually a zoo keeper who was mauled by a tiger at the Shanghai Zoo earlier this year, but tigers in the wild can get stroppy too. In March 2009, a man surnamed Guo was killed by a wild tiger when he and his friends decided to explore the wilderness around the Great Wall close to Beijing. Guo, aged 20, was picked off from the group and devoured. The moral of the story is: don’t go off the beaten track in tiger territory, unless you’re prepared for a chewing. Wildlife is by nature wild – in the words of Chris Rock, “That tiger didn’t go crazy, that tiger went tiger!”
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Related Links
13 Common Scams and How to Avoid Them
I Want To Raise My Family in China – Am I Crazy?
Crime and Punishment: How To Stay Safe in Guangzhou
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One obvious thing missing from the list is China's air pollution. China has the most polluted cities in the world, and is probably the country with the most respitory related illnesses. Also worth mentioning, is the napkin scandal in Beijing lately, where it was discovered that 80% of restaurant napkins contain carcinogens. Another thing that can kill you are the food containers they give you in restaurants for taking home left-overs. They too have poisoness chemicals way above the legal limits that are known to cause cancer. Oh and then there was the milk scandal and the lead poisoning scandal. Almost everything is bad for you nowadays...how depressing!
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Dear Brother or Sister, One of 52 is asking for your help. Our objective is a UN Resolution that secures peace through out the World for one week. A cease-fire to let cooler heads prevail is necessary. No settlement building in East Jerusalem, no missiles and no retaking of villages anywhere in the World. Hopefully during this week of peace we can collectively find solutions to agree on that will save our planet. Realistically Earth Hour and Earth Day are not sufficient motivation to look past our short lives here on Earth; we have to consider future generations. The Copenhagen Summit was a failure. We need our leaders to agree to work together on this vital issue. Send a letter to your President, Prime Minister, Senator, or Party leader. Send an e-mail to those folks in your contact list. Signed, One of 52
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that would be wonderful .but ti should be period.but as long as man keeps acting like childeren and want to control everything in there power that will not happen. until the people of this planet put there foot down .and it is going to take all of us .because beleive it or not it,s us that are suffering for all the wrong decisions. in this world. that the powers that be make.and it really comes down to business yes money . frist than power. so the common man has know say so in the decisions the power base makes. here in the united states we all need to come togehter also and we have . but we should all do more often. and maybe we can make a big different .but we need to be consistin so think about it all that reads this .and one step toward our future and the future for our childeren really depends on all of us.god bless us all .do not stand on the sidelines".eachone,who reachesone,should teachone"
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Two thousand people are killed on Chinese roads every week.
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There are so many people in china,so it si inevitable when we find the number is serious.I feel every one should try our best to protect us.that is all we can do .
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Source?
How come writers of these articles never cite their sources? After being here almost 10 years, I've 'heard' everything and seen much, much more.
C'mon you budding travel writers. Cite your sources and make this website a CREDIBLE source for information about China. Otherwise, it's all just opinion.
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Hey. Here's a giggle. If the fake peas guy is executed. What will he have written on his tombstone? REST IN PEAS
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Sorry. I just realised. There's no peas for the wicked.
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"One obvious thing missing from the list is China's air pollution." Did you not read point 6?
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"No peas for the wicked". So good!!!
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8. People spitting and peeing in the streets. (And at the same time asking you the way to the Bell Tower) 9. People asking you how much you earn a minute after you met them. 10. People smoking in elevators.
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The bottom line is China is a very dangerous country. Loneliness and boredom are also two things that can kill you through depression and also rage. I say rage because the internet, which is my only link with home, is so slow and restricted. I want to find out about what's happening at home but can't because all the sites are blocked and restricted - even the BBC is restricted, especially when it is a politics issue such as now when there is a General election at home. If it wasn't for my wife, I would return home and claim JSA. I am sure i will be happier and safer.
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IF all you people feel so bad about China....Why ar e you doing there?/where is perfect in usa people killing and stealing or Canada major cities..Beggers and drugs users everywhere,,,Chinese mostly are hard workers people and very friendly....Just mostly Usa people wants everybody speak english around them.. You dont see drugs in China like in America or Canada,,,,Boring..havd you lived in Canada ?China has atractions and a decent night life everywhere,,i see only showing indecent porno pics to some new comers from usa......That is fun..?/
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You been drinking to much! Go to a club and see how easy it is to score drugs or what about the drunks driving or riding their scooters around in the middle of the night. Theft is also a huge issue as is Violence! Have to love when Chinese people let a woman get beat almost to death (9 witnesses) by one little man and not one of the people around help. Open your eyes fool. Why do you think so many Chinese are trying to get out of China?
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But China will be the bigger rich superpower in the world...I like poronography sometimes....But i see only some american men showing their prides lokking for wormen..That is culture?// some envious comments...Where are you coming Houston..?/Peoples living in the street behind those beautifull buildings???/
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Everything that people are doing in Canada and America people are doing more or less in China Somethings are wide open, some things are behind closed doors All People complain in their home countries, China is the new home so people complain. Don't get crazy , Many chinese live in Canada and America Canada is a top destination for many Chinese (major cities) to study and immigrate too, and will continue to be so for many years to come Sorry you had a bad time in Canada , hope your luck is better in China
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Not everyone is from USA or Canada. I am from the UK. Yes, your problems are worse than ours and unfortunately, because our country is becoming so much like the USA we now have the same problems. Guns, Knives, Drugs and Gangs were never that bad in the UK. Only over the last 10-15yrs have they become really bad. Sadly, there is too much power over the UK from the USA. We should sleep in our own bed.
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The UK has its own problems with xenophobia, racism, a history of bloody colonialism, socioeconomic inequality, and a culturally specific relationship of abuse with alcohol/drugs that have led to the rise of violence, crime, and gangs.
Take responsibility for your own culture, history, and current government! Now it's you guys who have elected some creepy old right winged white guys who would prefer to steal bread from the mouths of the poor, especially if they speak with an accent, than to create a society where everyone gets a shot to eat at the table. No wonder the kids are out rioting in your streets! They can't afford to go to college anymore. No wonder they are drinking enough to kill a small horse and wandering the streets looking for victims to violently release their misplaced sense of hopelessness on.
I realize that the corporate media is based in America and uses the (fabricated) image of the American lifestyle to promote a culture of consumption, even to the detriment of what is healthy, moral, or sacred. However, in the end the idol of hollow self-interest and money worship resonates with people. We should all look to our own shores to figure out why this is so.
But then again, it's always easy to just blame America!
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come on,don't be so synical and judgemental . I've lived in ShangHai for 1 year.I know CHINA is not perfect,but just as normal and appealing as our home .right now here is my home.I know we like to distinguish our homeland from here,i understand .but trust me,where far away is where we thought a paradise,nowhere is perfect,right now shanghai still is a place i love so much. DON'T BE THAT HARSH ,OK?we should always find beauty than waiting it pops up itself!!
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China is not that dangerous. They don't even have an equvalent set of crime figures for cities like Detroit. As for RAGE. This is a stage of culture shock. If you were not raging about the internet, you would be raging about something else. It is a phase you have to go through I am afraid. Seen it, done it, ate it, got the 'T' shirt, raged at the man who sold the 'T' shirt to me.
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Now Mexico City, any Mexican border town, Columbia, Guatamala, those are dangerous places.
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I had to laugh at the comments in this article.What a load of rubbish!! China is one of the safest countries in the world.Just keep things in perspactive.China is country of 1.3 billion people.Go back home if you cant stand the heat in the kitchen!! I have been here eight years thrown away my glasses thanks to a very professional eye doctor in Nanchang No 2 hospital, have a set of excellent false teeth thanks to avery professional dentist in Tian Jin. Healthwise I have never felt better.Travellign in trains in China is very safe, in shangahai in the Metro over four million use it evry day, the long distance trains carry over three million peopel each day during puiblic holidays. China has the fastest pubilc trains in the world. A lot of the statements is this atricle and the comments are pure supposition, or very rare, not everyday occurences.The only time i had bad food was in KFC. Carl I read many mewspapers online evey morning,I have had no restriction at all.I can communcate on SKYPE with my family in New Zealand quite freely. If your bored and lonely, you have a problem not China. Go and get a life, China is waiting for you, Go out and make friends, your married to a Chinese, surely her family will take you in,.All my friends are Chinese, they stand by me and take care of me.I speak very little Chinese, even after eight years here.I have not needed , Chinese friends are always there!!
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Living in China for nearly eight years and not being able to speak Chinese is nothing to be proud of. It's actually quite embarrassing and shows your lack of respect and pure ignorance towards China. Do your Chinese friends help you wipe your ass after using the toilet also?
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Thank god for this post..We may be moving to Ningbo..i am from US and my husband is from Uk...we were hoping for a good life there and now you have given my hope...thank you again.
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