It is never particularly pleasant to talk about toxins and carcinogens commonly found in our living environment. It can be scary and generate anxiety, so it is not my preferred topic by far.
However, increasingly I feel that, with no intention of generating paranoia or fear of eating and living a normal life, it is worth talking more about of the most common sources of toxins and how to avoid them, as an important form of disease prevention.
According to the WHO, about 20% of cancer are attributable to food toxins, which would be called carcinogens (substances that promote the formation of cancer).
While it is almost certain that most foods will contain some bad elements alongside the beneficial components, it is the concentration of toxins in the overall diet over time and in comparison to the concentration of healthy components, that is important. Our amazing body is able to cope with the occasional unhealthy meal, but eating foods that contain significant amounts of toxins every day will start putting a strain on it.Â
I chose to start with acrylamide, because of a recent prospective cohort study that caught my eye, which looked into an association between dietary exposure to acrylamide and breast cancer risk in 80,597 women. It found that women with high dietary intake of foods high in acrylamide had a whopping 40% higher risk of premenopausal breast cancer.
Acrylamide is typically found in foods such as fried potato products, biscuits, crackers, and crispbread. It forms when foods high in sugar or starch are cooked at temperatures over 120°C, either by frying, grilling, roasting, or baking for 3 mins or longer. Acrylamide does not get added to food, but is a natural by-product of cooking processes that ‘brown’ food, often adding to its taste and appearance. Recipes that add sugar or honey prior to cooking will also increase the acrylamide content.
Gently browned or crisped foods usually have moderate amounts of acrylamide, the problem arises when cooking turns food dark brown or black, which usually means very high acrylamide concentration (measured in parts per billions, ppb).
Due to public concerns, food authorities around the world have started looking into acrylamide amounts in various food products, and possibly into labelling legislation.
When looking at the foods with the highest concentrations of acrylamide, I am afraid is not good news for the lovers of burnt toast or crisps... even veggies crisps, which many think of as healthier than regular crisps, are amongst the highest!
How to reduce exposure to acrylamide
It would be naturally impossible to avoid all acrylamides (unless one is prepared to live on boiled pasta and raw vegetables!), but it is possible to limit the intake of those foods with high concentrations.
High-concentration foods include: crisps, potato snacks, chips, French fries, burnt toast, cookies, pastries, biscuits, and dry crackers.
Following a low-sugar diet (which is helpful in any case) will help too, because it will naturally exclude processed foods with added sugar or sweetened flavours that need to be cooked.
If frying or roasting potatoes, avoid browning them too much, golden yellow is best. The same applies to toasting bread, best not to char or burn it.
If eating breakfast cereals, choose those made from whole grains that have not been heated to high temperatures and had sugar added.
Eat raw rather than roasted nuts.
Ensuring an abundance of fruit and vegetables in your diet will bring the precious phytonutrients that are natural antidotes to carcinogens.
A word about coffee
While coffee contains moderate levels of acrylamide, it is also rich in healthy phytonutrients that counterbalance the negative effects of such toxins. Indeed, regular coffee intake (up to 3-4 cups a day) is associated with lower risk of cancer, longevity and a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.Â
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