HEALTH
Some supplements harmful
Health and dietary supplements that claim to guarantee weight loss or have an aphrodisiac effect might contain prohibited substances or harmful drugs, the Department of Health (DOH) said yesterday, while calling on the public to avoid consuming unidentified and uncertified products. A health official said that of the 2,322 questionable items submitted for testing last year, 488 contained drugs that could cause side effects ranging from minor headaches and psychological disorders to kidney failure. The three most common drugs detected in the tests were sildenafil, used to treat erectile dysfunction, sibutramine, a treatment for obesity, and caffeine.
AGRICULTURE
Pesticide labeling promoted
The Council of Agriculture yesterday said it would start to promote labeling of pesticide residues on packages of Taiwanese tea products as early as next year to make Taiwanese tea safer and more competitive in international markets. “The labeling [of pesticide residues] is aimed at upgrading the quality of Taiwan-grown tea to facilitate its marketing and to create a clear distinction between Taiwanese tea and Chinese tea,” Tea Research and Extension Station director Chen Iou-zen (陳右人) said. The council said the nation has about 1,220 hectares of land dedicated to tea production that now meet traceability requirement. Consumers can easily identify Taiwanese tea through these traceability and origin markers on products, making it less likely that consumers will be duped into believing that lower-grade Vietnamese or Chinese teas are from Taiwan, he said.
HEALTH
Doctor warns on music fest
People who develop symptoms of dizziness, tinnitus or balance problems after attending the annual Spring Scream music festival in Kenting should seek medical attention immediately, a doctor recently advised, saying that he had noticed over the years a trend of an increased number of ear damage cases after the festival. This year, nearly 200 bands performed at the festival, which took place from Friday to Monday. Li Po-hung (力博宏), an attending physician at the Department of Otolaryngology at Cheng Shin General Hospital, said incidences of hearing loss among patients who had attended the festival tended to be about 10 to 20 percent higher than the rest of the population. Live concerts usually produce sounds that could easily reach between 80 and 90 decibels, Li said, adding that the level of a normal conversation is usually between 20 and 30 decibels and the noise of passing vehicles on the road is about 50 to 60 decibels.
CHARITIES
Taipei to give US$100,000
In response to an appeal by Pope Benedict XVI, the government will donate US$100,000 to help the Pontifical Council Cor Unum take care of refugees fleeing violence in Libya, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement yesterday. The UN refugee agency has warned that the humanitarian situation in Libya is reaching crisis proportions and refugees fleeing to the borders with Egypt and Tunisia are desperately in need of shelter, water and food supplies, the ministry said. Concerned about the plight of the refugees, the government decided to channel its donation through a Catholic charity organization, which it holds in high esteem as the agency continues to help victims despite the difficulties and danger it faces, the ministry said. Separately, the ministry said it had evacuated Taiwanese staff stationed in Libya.
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
CHANGES: After-school tutoring periods, extracurricular activities during vacations or after-school study periods must not be used to teach new material, the ministry said The Ministry of Education yesterday announced new rules that would ban giving tests to most elementary and junior-high school students during morning study and afternoon rest periods. The amendments to regulations governing public education at elementary schools and junior high schools are to be implemented on Aug. 1. The revised rules stipulate that schools are forbidden to use after-school tutoring periods, extracurricular activities during summer or winter vacation or after-school study periods to teach new course material. In addition, schools would be prohibited from giving tests or exams to students in grades one to eight during morning study and afternoon break periods, the
AMENDMENT: Contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau must be reported, and failure to comply could result in a prison sentence, the proposal stated The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) yesterday voted against a proposed bill by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers that would require elected officials to seek approval before visiting China. DPP Legislator Puma Shen’s (沈伯洋) proposed amendments to the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), stipulate that contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau should be reported, while failure to comply would be punishable by prison sentences of up to three years, alongside a fine of NT$10 million (US$309,041). Fifty-six voted with the TPP in opposition