Formula baby milk can contain 40 times more aluminium than breast milk, potentially causing health problems in later life, claim researchers.

Traces of the metal in milk from some of the UK's leading products were found to be much higher than is legally allowed in water, according to scientists.

One formula made by Cow & Gate – specifically marketed for premature babies – had the highest level of all, with more than 800 micrograms per litre.

Organic food sales have taken off in China after a series of safety scares, including the disclosure that one in 10 meals is cooked using oil dredged from the sewer.

The Chinese now consume more than twice as much organic food as health-conscious Japan.
The market is worth an annual 10billion yuan (£1billion) having quadrupled in the past five years. For comparison, the British organic market is worth roughly £2billion. Interest has been promoted by a series of scares including toxic beans, contaminated milk and pork, pesticide-laced dumplings, chemically-tainted chicken, and the growing presence of what is known as “sewage oil”.
 

Malaysia is considering releasing genetically modified mosquitoes designed to combat dengue fever, in a landmark field trial that has come in for criticism from environmentalists.

In the first experiment of its kind in Asia, 2,000-3,000 male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes would be released in two Malaysian states in October or November.

An experimental vaccine appears to be safe and effective in protecting people against hepatitis E infection, a large trial in China has found.

Hepatitis E virus is shed in feces and spread via tainted water and food. Even though most people recover from it, it can cause severe illness in elderly people and has a mortality rate of 1 to 3 percent. It can kill between 5 to 25 percent of pregnant women and those who survive can suffer high rates of miscarriage.