KiasuParents - Parenting in Singapore

Snacks spark cancer scare

Potato fries sold by fast food giants KFC and McDonald's contain a substance suspected of causing cancer, the Consumer Council revealed yesterday.

The consumer watchdog warned that nearly all 90 samples of potato chips, biscuits and other snacks it tested from a number of manufacturers contained the chemical compound acrylamide, which is probably carcinogen.

Acrylamide is known to have caused cancer in animals, and has been classified as "probably carcinogenic to humans" by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

Of the tested snacks, which were all deep-fried or baked, only one - 90-gram Brilliant Indonesian Shrimp Chips made in China - was found to be acrylamide-free. A 140g packet of Jack 'n Jill Potato Chips BBQ Flavour made in China was found to contain 3,000 micrograms per kilogram - the highest of the samples tested.

Six products by local firm Garden contained acrylamide, including its Pop- Pan Spring Onion Crackers (200ug/kg) and Garden Sisisic Cream Sandwich Biscuit (510ug/kg).

Nine products from global giant Kraft Foods also contained the substance including Kraft Ritz Cheese Flavored Sandwich Crackers made in Indonesia (310ug/kg).

Biscuits made by EDO, Four Seas, Elected and No Frills, and fries from KFC and McDonald's all contained varying levels of the substance.

In animal testing, it was found that acrylamide can increase the incidence of tumors in various organs and tissues including the thyroid, adrenal and mammary glands and affect the central nervous system.

Citing an animal testing document, Theresa Choi Man-yan, principal medical officer of the Food and Environment Hygiene Department, said a daily intake of 180ug of acrylamide may cause breast cancer.

However, there is no data available on humans, making it hard to made a recommendation on how much of any specific food containing the substance is safe to eat, she said.

Acrylamide is generated during processing. Its level is affected by various conditions including the variety and growing environment of potatoes, storage temperature and method of manufacture.

In Hong Kong, as in other places, there is no specific regulation on the acrylamide level in food, she said.

A spokesman of Garden Foods said it is studying methods to reduce the acrylamide content in its products.

http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_prin ... d=30644638

Acrylamide is a chemical formed when frying, baking or grilling carbohydrate-rich foods at temperatures above 120°C. Acrylamide is thus found in a number of foods, such as bread, crisps, French fries and biscuits.

blitz wrote:Acrylamide is a chemical formed when frying, baking or grilling carbohydrate-rich foods at temperatures above 120°C. Acrylamide is thus found in a number of foods, such as bread, crisps, French fries and biscuits.

Does that mean when we deep fried potatoes at home, it will cause the chemical to be formed as well?

SAHM_TAN wrote:

blitz wrote:Acrylamide is a chemical formed when frying, baking or grilling carbohydrate-rich foods at temperatures above 120°C. Acrylamide is thus found in a number of foods, such as bread, crisps, French fries and biscuits.

Does that mean when we deep fried potatoes at home, it will cause the chemical to be formed as well?

I should think so. Probably that will include fried rice as well, since it is a carbohydrate rich food. Of course, the temperature plays a part, but then again, who ever measures the temperature of the wok or the oil when frying ya?

blitz wrote:

SAHM_TAN wrote:

blitz wrote:Acrylamide is a chemical formed when frying, baking or grilling carbohydrate-rich foods at temperatures above 120°C. Acrylamide is thus found in a number of foods, such as bread, crisps, French fries and biscuits.

Does that mean when we deep fried potatoes at home, it will cause the chemical to be formed as well?

I should think so. Probably that will include fried rice as well, since it is a carbohydrate rich food. Of course, the temperature plays a part, but then again, who ever measures the temperature of the wok or the oil when frying ya?

Wow! Sounds scary :!:

Nowadays more n more food will cause cancer. Anybody read this book? 'The miracle of enzyme' by Hiromi Shinya,MD. According to the book, even milk is not good for our body

What food is safe to eat now?

how about boiled water ?

Red_Snow wrote:Nowadays more n more food will cause cancer. Anybody read this book? 'The miracle of enzyme' by Hiromi Shinya,MD. According to the book, even milk is not good for our body

Frankly, humans are the only mammals to drink another species milk, and way past weaning stage too!! That dont seem right.

Human babies drink human milk for the first few years of their lives; calves drink cow’s milk until they can fend for themselves; but adult humans do not drink human milk, and adult cows do not drink cow’s milk. So why, do adult humans drink cow’s milk? Further, why are humans the only animals that not only drink milk in adulthood but another animal’s milk altogether?

Dairy is nature’s perfect food–but only if you’re a calf.

blitz wrote:

Red_Snow wrote:Nowadays more n more food will cause cancer. Anybody read this book? 'The miracle of enzyme' by Hiromi Shinya,MD. According to the book, even milk is not good for our body

Frankly, humans are the only mammals to drink another species milk, and way past weaning stage too!! That dont seem right.

Human babies drink human milk for the first few years of their lives; calves drink cow’s milk until they can fend for themselves; but adult humans do not drink human milk, and adult cows do not drink cow’s milk. So why, do adult humans drink cow’s milk? Further, why are humans the only animals that not only drink milk in adulthood but another animal’s milk altogether?

Dairy is nature’s perfect food–but only if you’re a calf.

yes, that's what exactly written in the book. Also written that milk is the most difficult food to digest