Are there potential long-term risks associated with the consumption of the foods?
Answer Long-term animal toxicity studies are not generally applicable to the testing of whole foods. Such studies are commonly used in the safety assessment of many compounds including pesticides, pharmaceuticals, industrial chemicals and food additives. In these cases, the test substance is well characterised, of known purity, of no nutritional value, and human exposure is generally low. It is therefore possible to feed such compounds to laboratory animals at a range of doses (using amounts greatly above expected human exposure levels) in order to identify any potential adverse effects. Establishing a dose-response relationship is a pivotal step in toxicological testing. By determining the level of exposure at which no adverse effects occur, a safe level of exposure for humans can be established which includes appropriate safety factors. By contrast, traditional toxicological testing is not applicable to the assessment of whole foods. Foods are complex mixtures of constituents and hav
