Acrylamide in food....what to do?

[winsomehill]

I was just reading on my current favorite blog "The fanatic cook" about Acrylamide. I'm curious if anyone in Cathe-land knows about this suspected cancer causing substance. More specificly how to avoid it.
Anybody who wants to look it up go to:

http://fanaticcook.blogspot.com/2006_09_01_fanaticcook_archive.html

As far as I could make out it's really bad for us, occurs naturally, and California wants to put warning labels on certain foods. So, if anyone can help clear this up for me, it would be much appreciated.

Heather

 

[ZT27]

A lot of things are bad for us. I don't know anything about Acrylamide but one thing I do notice is California thinks pretty much everything causes cancer but the kicker is CA is one of the states for highest rate of cancer so it makes me wonder about them. I honestly don't pay attention to a lot of things FDA and CA tell people. A common sense would be eat fruits, veggies, whole grains, organic meat, etc. Then again, some experts say apples cause cancer. I'd just be careful and do more researches. Just be careful with what FDA says. They say it's safe to use the worst thing possible but it's unsafe to use healthy things. Their brains are backwards and they're money hungry. JMO.

Lisa

 

[cricardo]

Hi,

I'm a biologist, not a chemist, but here's a link to some info on acrylamide that you might find interesting.

www.sciencelab.com/xMSDS-Acrylamide-9927422



Just some things to keep in mind: The info you'll find on the web about acrylamide will usually be dealing with pure acrylamide- clearly, you wouldn't be guzzling acrylamide out of a bottle. Some small amount is made in the burning of meat, so do don't char your steaks, or at least don't consume the really darkened bits. Apparently, there's also some produced in the frying of some foods.
Keep things in perspective though- if you're consuming acrylamide, your not doing it in really significant quantities.

On the other hand (don't be alarmed)- I work with acrylamide solutions on a nearly daily basis. We keep the bottle in the fridge and we don't even TOUCH the outside of the bottle unless we're wearing latex gloves.

cristina.

 

[eminenz2]

I hate to be blunt, but here it is - after being emailed (by a "friend") a link about how bras cause breast cancer, I am now positive that breathing itself causes cancer.

So does blinking your eyes.

And peeing...

And chewing...

And laughing...

Etcetera, etcetera. etcetera!!! Heehee!!!

Susan L.G.

 

[beckymd]

We're doing neoplasia this week in pathology. From the ultimate source of pathology, Robins Pathologic Basis of Disease 7th edition page 286:

"The only certain way of avoiding cancer is not to be born; to live is to incur the risk."

I read that about an hour ago and it made me chuckle. These books are usually so dry and it seems as if Dr. Robbins added a bit of humor to the cancer topic.

-Becky
2nd year med student
Florida State College of Medicine

 

[sparrow]

Becky I love that!

And LOL to the thing about bras causing cancer. When i read about this or that causing cancer (or anything) I always think of "the dose makes the poison." There are naturally occuring cancer causing substances in mushrooms and tea too. The green stuff on potato chips is poisonous to humans, but you'd have to eat an entire Lay's factory to ingest enough for it to matter. I wouldn't worry to much about this sort of thing. Just one Catheites opinion!

Sparrow

Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming ‘Wow - what a ride!’ — Peter Sage

 

[winsomehill]

Thanks, for all your thoughts on the subject.
Main theme --Keep things in perspective --. Good advice.
Heather

 

[kathryn]

From what I understand, acrylamide is formed when carbohydrates are heated to a high temperature, so eliminating, or at least limiting, fried/high-heated carbs (chips, fries, etc.) and eating lots of antioxidant-containing fruits and veggies would be protective.

Cancer forms in 4 stages, only the first of which is exposure to a carcinogen. You can short-circuit cancer at any of those stages. (see Michael Greger's DVD "Stopping cancer before it starts" from www.veganmd.org or www.veganessentials.com for more info. T. Colin Campbell also addresses the steps in cancer formation in his "China Study").