This Southern cooking tradition is tasty but lethal

Southern fried

When I finally quit smoking, I decided that on the anniversary of that day, I would always do something that would make me healthier.

Little did I know that the thing I did the following year may actually have been even better for me than giving up my Marlboro Lights. I gave up calamari. Well, not just calamari but all fried food.

Now that makes me a boring person to share an appetizer with, but it turns out, it could save my life on par with snubbing out that butt.

Down in the belt

Doctors and researchers have taken to calling the states between Arkansas and the Carolinas the “stroke belt.” If you live in those states, your risk of stroke is statistically higher than people who live north or west of those states.

When Emory University researchers analyzed diets of more than 21,000 people all over the U.S., they found that most of us eat fish a couple of times each week.

The difference in the stroke belt: Much higher consumption of FRIED fish.

One of the researchers told the New York Times, “When we look at dietary differences in and out of the stroke belt, it’s hard to find any other than this one.”

This isn’t exactly a stunning surprise, of course. A few years ago I told you about a similar study that showed higher risk of heart attack and death among those who regularly eat fried fish.

The Times article explains that fish sources of omega-3 fatty acids, which help prevent stroke, are destroyed by frying and replaced with cooking oil.

Hmmm. That sounds a little simplistic. I buy the part about destroying omega-3s. But that can’t be the only thing that happens during frying that makes deep-fried foods so bad for you…

Be strong! Resist!

Actually, deep frying creates a sort of perfect storm of serious health risks.

Problem One: Advanced glycation end products–also known as AGEs.

AGEs are formed when foods are cooked at very high temperatures (as with deep frying). These toxins actually change the structure of enzymes and other proteins in your body. Over time, tissue and organ damage can occur, particularly in diabetics.

In a 2009 study, researchers at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine compared the effects of a normal Western diet with an “AGE-less” diet where foods were slow-cooked with plenty of moisture, such as steaming or poaching.

Naturally, levels of AGE toxins dropped in the AGE-less group. But inflammatory markers (such as C-reactive protein) were also reduced while vascular function improved.

Oils that create the most toxins when heated to high temperatures include canola, corn, soya, sunflower, and other vegetable oils.

Problem Two: Trans fatty acids.

Many restaurants use partially hydrogenated oils for deep frying. These oils deliver generous amounts of trans fatty acids. And as we’ve seen in several studies, cardiovascular risks increase when even small amounts of TFAs are eaten daily.

Problem Three: Acrylamide.

Acrylamide is a carcinogen that’s created when foods are cooked at high temperatures. The highest levels of acrylamide occur in carbohydrates, which would include the breading that’s often used to coat fish before frying.

The highest levels of acrylamide occur in potato products. And just about anywhere you find a piece of deep-fried fish, you’ll almost always find a heap of French fries filling the rest of the plate.

I’ll admit, giving up French fries was harder than quitting smoking–and I doubt the day will come when droves of fried-food eaters will be forced to chomp away outside, at least 150 feet from the door to a building. But if you want to significantly decrease your health risks, saying “no” to fried food could be the single most important change you make.

And trust me, in this case I know how hard it is to say “no.”

Sources:
“Diet: Fried Fish Is Seen as a ‘Stroke Belt’ Culprit” Nicholas Bakalar, New York Times, 1/3/11, nytimes.com