Is acrylamide dangerous enough that drastic actions should be taken? If so, should they be addressed immediately, or on a long-term basis? Acrylamide, a carcinogen, is in almost half of all food products (Canada). Acrylamide was specifically chosen to be discussed because of the recent scientific concern of the presence of it in fried potatoes. Through studies, implications, and solutions, a step-by-step approach will be used to determine if acrylamide is a minor threat or a major crisis. In order to understand the possible far-reaching complications of acrylamide, it is important to understand the basic chemical structure and composition of this animal carcinogen in relation to fried potatoes. According to the Department of Health and Human Services and their convention on Reproductive and Developmental Toxicity of Acrylamide, it can be found in: cigarette smoke, packaging, water and basically everywhere. Trace amounts will always be found because it occurs naturally in the environment. Acrylamide adversely affects our reproductive and nervous system, and is about as dangerous as arsenic in large amounts. http://cerhr.niehs.nih.gov/news/acrylamide/final_report.pdf. The acrylamide in fried potatoes is produced when the amino acid asparagine mixes with glucose. Another possible formation involves the Maillard Browning Reaction. In summation, this reaction is the amino acid-asparagine combination but destroys other amino acids without enzymes. This is haven for acrylamide formation since potatoes contain a large amount of asparagine (nnthing).
Acrylamide formation only occurs when heat above 248 degrees Fahrenheit is added, such as the frying of french fries. Acrylamide is also only natural when it is a by-product of cooking. Acrylamide is a mysterious product, and the reason it causes cancerous growth is unknown, because most reasons for cancer are also unknown. However, much of this important information was not even an issue until a Swedish study was published in April of 2002. There were no studies of acrylamide in food, because it was not an ingredient. There was a study on how it affected construction workers in tunnels, and as a side product of that research, acrylamide was found in foods. They found this particularly in fried potatoes. The FDA found this in all foods, to a lesser extent. This study has been replicated and confirmed by multiple reliable sources, keeping only in mind the sole existence of acrylamide, not the effects. Other food groups which can have substantial amounts of acrylamide are crisp bread, breakfast cereals, fried potato products, biscuits, cookies and popcorn (newconn). Foods which are boiled or cooked run no risk of having extra acrylamide added, because of the lack of the Maillard browning reaction in those phases (nnthing). Here is a graph edited to show solely the fried potato data: The implications of this study are far-reaching. More studies have been completed; the toxicity of acrylamide is now being investigated, and there has been a
general flurry of activity in the international food committees regarding acrylamide. The question of all this relies on knowing if all this is safe. The question that wasn’t answered was if it was cancerous in humans. The most important fact is that harmful levels in acrylamide in food are not yet found. “Considering the low level of estimated human exposure to acrylamide derived from a variety of sources, the Expert Panel expressed negligible concern for adverse reproductive and developmental effects for exposures in the general population.” This means essentially that until further studies prove otherwise, people should not be frantic about the acrylamide situation. This study also does not confirm a correlation between a high-acrylamide diet and cancer (nnthing). Humans consume slightly over 1/100th of 1 per cent of the dose that gave cancer to half of an exposed group of rats that were fed fried foods with acrylamide. This estimate includes the difference between a rat’s body weight and human’s. Theoretically, that dose would kill about forty males each year in the U.S. But if it we did consume a hundred thousand times what we do normally daily, fifty percent of the U.S. population would probably exhibit some type of cancer. Another interesting statistic is that fifteen to fifty percent of the acrylamide intake of a pregnant mother is transferred to the fetus. This is more significant, yet still insignificant (ntthing). A problem presents itself when one realizes that many times the browning process that causes acrylamide makes food more appealing. Will the public substitute less tasty french fries for a marginal risk? However, a precautionary approach must be taken, since acrylamide is, for what seems like the millionth time, a carcinogen.
Domestic prevention is fairly straightforward in the case of fried potatoes. The bottom line: Deep frying at very high temperatures in the case of potatoes should be kept to a minimum, and a minimum time. Potatoes should left to soak in water to remove excess sugar. Over-baked potatoes pose a risk, too. Avoid browning, and use proper baking paper to avoid browning even more. Using margarine instead of oil helps to decrease the feasibility of burning. This is because studies shown that olive oil increases the risk of acrylamide by fifty percent. Antioxidants such as rosemary can be used to decrease the risk of acrylamide by up to twenty-five percent. But there are many consumed fried potatoes that are processed, and the food industry has work to do (Canada). Frito-Lay is attempting this reduction through several methods, including disrupting acrylamide formation, removing food reactants, and removing acrylamide after formation (choices). Since acrylamide is in many foods, to single out the potato industry would be unfair. The industry fears that new research could bring litigation. The official statement of the U.S. government says to stand by the food pyramid, and acrylamide intake will be reduced. Solutions involving the U.S. government are limiting the levels of acrylamide in food (which is already being done voluntarily), defining the maximum intake of acrylamide in human food, and developing a maximum intake. Neither of the last two can be done until studies on human consumption are completed. This will take a few more years.
Even if it is carcinogenic, acrylamide will never be a major crisis if people take precaution through healthy eating and safe cooking. If it is found that high levels cause an extreme amount of prevalent cancer, then people will be forced to change their cooking habits, and governmental regulations on the food industry will occur. Until the safe levels of intake are found, however; the safety of acrylamide in fried potatoes hangs in the balance.