Many people eat bananas at breakfast or at other times of day. The fruit is popular for its taste and nutrition, but it pays to be careful when buying it at market, because some dishonest traders are alleged to use chemicals to ripen bananas quickly. Eating bananas ripened with such chemicals can pose various health risks. You cannot be sure from a banana’s colour or appearance alone whether it was ripened with chemicals, but a few signs can put you on guard.
A report by TV9 set out six signs of bananas ripened with chemicals.
1. No dark or brown spots on the peel
When bananas ripen naturally, small brown spots often appear on the peel. Not every naturally ripened banana has them, however, so the absence of spots alone cannot be taken as proof that chemicals were used.
2. An unusually bright yellow colour
If the peel is an entirely even bright yellow with no variation in colour anywhere, the banana may have been ripened artificially. Colour also varies with the variety and the stage of ripeness.
3. Green stalk, yellow banana
If the stalk is still green or unripe while the whole fruit has turned yellow, be careful. This may be a sign of artificial ripening.
4. Ripe outside, unripe inside
If the peel is yellow but the flesh is hard, astringent or tastes unripe, it is worth asking whether the fruit was sent to market before it had fully ripened.
5. No natural sweet smell
Naturally ripened bananas usually have a sweet, familiar scent. If a banana lacks that natural smell, be careful, though the absence of smell alone does not confirm that chemicals were used.
6. Every banana in the bunch equally ripe
If every banana in a bunch has ripened at the same time to an unusually identical colour and condition, it may have been ripened artificially.
The risks of eating chemically ripened bananas
Unapproved or contaminated chemicals used to ripen bananas can be harmful to health. In particular, chemicals such as calcium carbide that carry harmful contaminants can cause adverse reactions in the body.
Exposure to such chemicals can cause vomiting, stomach pain and diarrhoea. It can also cause headaches and dizziness and harm the nervous system.
So when buying bananas, do not decide on colour or looks alone; pay attention to the fruit’s natural smell, texture and ripeness.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report