What is acrylamide? This carcinogen is in which foods should you avoid?

Acrylamide is a strange name but is found in many familiar foods that we often eat. So what is acrylamide? This carcinogen is in which foods should you avoid? Find out more information in the article below!

What is acrylamide?

Acrylamide was first discovered in 2002. According to the US FDA, this chemical is formed in the foods that we eat every day.

Specifically, acrylamide is synthesized from sugars and amino acids (asparagine) in a high temperature environment. Such as fried food, grilled or fried food,…

Besides appearing from food, acrylamide is also used a lot in the paper industry, dyeing and waste treatment or appearing in a number of products such as household appliances, cosmetics and cigarette smoke, etc.

Acrylamide

Harm of acrylamide

Increased chance of cancer

Scientists have proven that acrylamide can cause cancer in humans if you consume it in high doses.

According to a report by FAO/WHO in 2002 , when they used high doses of acrylamide on rodents, they had an increased risk of cancer in the nervous system, mammary gland, uterus, thyroid gland, etc.

Experts recommend that you should not consume more than 0.5 mg/kg body weight of acrylamide/day to ensure health.

Increased chance of cancer

Affects the nervous system

A study in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry in 2008 found that acrylamide can block nerve impulse conduction. The effects of acrylamide may play a sizable role in causing Alzheimer’s disease.

In addition, people who work in environments with acrylamide such as paper production, dyes, etc. will be easily exposed to acrylamide. This leaves them with peripheral nerve damage and often causes numbness in the limbs.

Nervous system effects

Affects fertility

Because acrylamide is a potentially cumulative neurotoxin, acrylamide may impair fertility.

Besides, acrylamide is easily soluble in water, so pregnant women need to avoid consuming foods that contain a lot of acrylamide. Because the amount of water in the body of pregnant women and the fetus is very large, so acrylamide can penetrate and affect the fetus.

Scientists recommend that pregnant and breastfeeding women consume no more than 20 micrograms of acrylamide per day.

Affects fertility

Foods with the most acrylamide

Acrylamide is commonly found in foods made from potatoes, cereals, and coffee. If these plant-based foods are processed at high temperatures such as frying, roasting, or baking, they will produce a lot of acrylamide, which can cause cancer.

Foods high in acrylamide

In addition, acrylamide is often found in cigarette smoke and polluted water near plastic, paper or dye production areas.

How to limit the consumption of acrylamide

To limit the harmful effects of acrylamide on human health and body, we should take a number of measures as follows:

Follow a healthy diet

The FDA advises that you need to balance your diet with starches, vegetables, and protein. In addition, you should eat more fruits, leafy vegetables, vegetables and organic whole grains and get protein in meat, eggs and nuts. At the same time, limit your intake of saturated fats, trans fats, salt and added sugars.

Healthy eating

Change cooking method

Instead of using high-temperature cooking methods such as frying, baking and frying, you should prepare food daily by boiling or steaming to ensure the nutrition and health of your family.

Change cooking method

Some methods to make food produce less acrylamide

For potatoes, which produce a lot of acrylamide during processing, soak raw potatoes in water for 15 to 30 minutes before frying to limit the formation of acrylamide during cooking.

In addition, you should only store potatoes in a cool and ventilated place, limit the amount of potatoes in the refrigerator to reduce the production of acrylamide during processing.

In addition, you should not eat chips, toast that are dark brown, scorched or burned to reduce the amount of acrylamide absorbed into the body.

Limit consumption of acrylamide through food

Above is information about acrylamide and foods containing acrylamide causing a high risk of cancer. Hope this article has provided you with more useful information!

Source: Specializing in Vietnamese Lifestyle – Nationwide Electronic Newspaper

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