Finally We Know Why Cooking Grains Can Poison Your Food

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Finally We Know Why Cooking Grains Can Poison Your Food

 

 

Scientists in the UK may have uncovered the underlying origins of

acrylamide, the carcinogenic substance formed when many grains are

cooked at high temperatures, by taking a different approach:

Determining how the chemicals that create it get into whole foods

before they're prepared.

 

Based on various analyses of wheat, asparagines -- an amino acid that

contributes, along with sugar, in the formation of acrylamide --

collect in higher concentrations in farms where sulphur is deficient,

a problem around the globe.

Researchers tested their theory by growing wheat in similar conditions

some with and others without sulphur. By comparison, wheat without

sulphur contact that was milled and cooked contained almost five times

as much acrylamide. What's more, the acrylamide content of other

cooked products made from that same wheat sans sulphur was more than

six times higher.

 

Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry November 15, 2006; 54(23):

8951-8955

 

Nature.com November 23, 2006

 

Dr. Mercola's Comment:

 

I first warned readers of the dangers of acrylamide in April of 2002.

Problems like are this typical of factory farmed, highly processed

foods in general. Ideally, you should consume foods that are minimally

processed, and come from local, environmentally sustainable sources.

 

It is important to understand the impact you have when you spend your

money on highly processed factory food. Changing your shopping

patterns by supporting local agriculture will not only help improve

your health, it will also help improve the environment and bring back

our rural communities.

 

At the same time, over half of the foods you eat should be uncooked

and eaten in the raw state. It may take you awhile to get to that

point, but in the meantime, you can start by avoiding processed foods

which simply have no redeeming qualities whatsoever, such as

doughnuts, all sodas, French fries, and potato chips.

 

In addition, you can reduce your exposure to these cancer-causing

chemicals by throwing away your Teflon-coated cookware.

 

On Vital Votes, Dr. Matthew Loop from Lilburn, Georia agrees that

French fries need to be taken off of your menu:

 

" Speaking of Acrylamide, popular American brands of snack chips

and French fries contain the highest levels of the substance,

according to laboratory tests commissioned by the Center for Science

in the Public Interest (CSPI). Fast-food French fries showed

disturbingly high levels of acrylamide with large orders containing 39

to 82 micrograms. One-ounce portions of Pringles potato crisps

contained about 25 micrograms, with corn-based Fritos and Tostitos

containing half that amount or less.

 

" Regular and Honey Nut Cheerios contained 6 or 7 micrograms of the

carcinogenic substance. The amount of acrylamide in a large order of

fast-food French fries is at least 300 times more than what the U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency allows in a glass of water! ...

 

" Clark University research professor Dale Hattis estimated that

acrylamide causes several thousand cancers per year in Americans.

Hattis, an expert in risk analysis, based his estimate on standard EPA

projections of risks from animal studies and limited sampling of

acrylamide levels in Swedish and American foods. "

 

You can view other responses to this article at Vital Votes. You can

also vote on the comments, or add your own, by first registering.

 

Related Articles:

 

Does Acrylamide in Common, Cooked Foods Cause Cancer?

 

More Reports Confirm Carcinogen in Snack Chips and French Fries

 

The Five Absolute Worst Foods You Can Eat

 

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