FDA drops ball on cancer-causing chemical in foods
It’s a cancer-causing chemical in dozens of the foods we eat every single day.
And nobody is lifting a finger to protect us from it.
You might remember the media frenzy in 2002 when studies found that foods like French fries and potato chips can actually give us cancer.
It’s all because of something called acrylamide that forms on certain foods — especially carbs — when they’re cooked at high temperatures. It’s so toxic you’ll even find it in cigarette smoke.
Now, after 14 years of dragging its feet, the FDA is basically admitting it’s not going to do anything to remove acrylamide from our foods.
Fortunately, there are some simple things you can do to ditch acrylamide from your diet — and protect yourself and the people you love from a bout with cancer.
Because it’s produced as a byproduct of the manufacturing process, you’ll never see it listed on ingredient labels.
But there’s a good chance you’re still eating lots of it — and it could be putting your health (and life) at risk.
You see, we’ve known for years that acrylamide can cause all sorts of tumors in animals. And even the National Toxicology program lists it as a possible cause of cancer, right next to heavy-duty industrial chemicals.
And, unfortunately, acrylamide is in lots of our favorite junk foods and the processed carbs that line our supermarket aisles.
Aside from French fries and potato chips, you’ll find it in pretzels, cookies, cakes, and even some cereals marketed to babies!
Now the FDA has been promising for years that it was going to issue some rules that would keep us safe from acrylamide. But it’s clearer than ever that we’re on our own.
Just this week, the agency finally published its guidelines — and they were page after page of total nonsense. There wasn’t a single word on acrylamide exposure limits, and none of the recommendations were binding.
I guess they’re expecting food manufacturers to act out of the goodness of their hearts. Well, good luck with that.
The guidelines were such junk that even the Center for Science in the Public Interest said they had about as much substance as “thin gruel.”
Acrylamide is dangerous stuff — and it’s clearly up to us to keep ourselves safe. And while we can’t eliminate this chemical entirely from our diets, there are some ways we can significantly reduce our exposure:
Tip #1: Acrylamide forms during cooking from a chemical reaction between natural sugars in foods and an amino acid, making potatoes especially susceptible. French fries and potato chips are the worst offenders. Hey, we knew these weren’t exactly health foods — but you might want to seriously consider ditching them entirely.
Tip #2: The best way to make potatoes is to boil them with the skin on. And don’t store them in the refrigerator as that ups their natural sugar content. (If you must have roasted or pan fried potatoes, slice and soak them in water for 30 minutes before cooking).
Tip #3: Don’t overdo the toast. Go for a light brown rather than a dark color. And if you make your own bread, one study found that adding the herb rosemary significantly lowered levels of acrylamide (and is quite delicious!).
Tip #4: If you typically start your day with a bowl of cold cereal, you’re likely getting a dose of acrylamide. The “toasted” varieties will have the highest readings. On the other hand, an old-fashioned bowl of oatmeal has been found to have little to none of the chemical.
Sources:
“FDA releases final guidance on acrylamide reduction” David Oliver, March 10, 2016, FoodDive, fooddive.com
“FDA issues final guidance for industry on how to reduce acrylamide in certain foods” March 10, 2016 fda.gov
