: : Poison : :
It’s amazing how mislead people can get when searching on the net. River posted a recipe for an interesting salad with shumac (powder?) as one of the ingredients. Next thing you know, a smart-alec goes and says she’s out to poison them with poison shumac. 
Oh yeah. Watch out you Westerners! We Asians are out to poison you all! Muahahaha! 
Okay, I’m just kidding here. Poking fun at that American. Fell off my chair laughing my head off. I finally found the page that the American was referring to so here it is. If that guy is so worried about sumac, buy the spices from a Middle-Eastern shop who would be able to differentiate between what is poisonous and what is not. Haiya! We will be civilised to let you walk into the shop and purchase the goods.
Ok ok ok. Will finally stop the teasing. Do not take me seriously as I’m just making light of the incident. Live a little people!
All food that we eat can lead to health problems and at times, dangerous. Look at the list of Chinese food alone :
Lap Cheong (processed pork literally soaked in nitrates which causes cancer)
Cangkuk Manis (if you do not know how to cook it, don’t bother)
MSG (too much will cause shakes, blackouts, etc.)
Artificial Vinegar (nearly pure acetic acid! used by hawkers because it’s cheaper than malt vinegar)
The list is endless. What are we going to do about it? I know! Do what the Koreans do : use metal chopsticks whenever you’re eating. If the food reacts to the metal, chances are it’s poison. Wait a min! Aren’t you using stainless steel forks, knives and spoons? Should work just as well.
So, 
and live a good life today!