Before the beginning of today's article, DianGe has prepared a picture of extreme pleasure for you, and friends who have not yet eaten are careful to drool.
(Source: soogif)
These slightly charred foods always have a magical power that makes people addicted.
However, some of the claims circulating online are frightening:
"Burnt food can't be eaten, it will cause cancer!"
What is the truth?
Poke the video for a sneak peek
Haven't seen enough? The text below reveals more truth
For food, the success is also "temperature", and the defeat is also "temperature".
Food is heated at the right temperature, and good things follow:
Pathogenic bacteria and parasites are killed and safer;
Fiber is softened, protein is denatured, tastes better, and many nutrients are easier to digest and absorb;
Produce a variety of aroma components and color substances, more fragrant, better looking;
……
But when food is heated to too high a temperature, bad things ensue:
Healthy components such as vitamin C, B vitamins, and unsaturated fatty acids are destroyed and harmful substances are generated, including carcinogens.
(Source: soogif)
120°C: Start of "acrylamide"
Acrylamide is a Class 2A carcinogen recognized by the World Health Organization as having a high potential for carcinogen [1].
Simply put, foods containing carbohydrates and amino acids (such as potatoes, bread, steamed buns, etc.) are easily "Maillard reaction" after being cooked at a high temperature of more than 120 ° C.
This reaction causes the food to turn yellowish brown and emit a tantalizing aroma, but it also produces acrylamide [2 to 3].
The darker the color and the stronger the aroma after cooking, the higher the acrylamide content. In other words, food such as charred steamed buns and bread contains a large amount of acrylamide.
200 °C: Start of production of "heterocyclic amines"
Foods rich in protein and amino acids (such as chicken, beef, pork, and fish) that are heated to more than 200°C produce heterocyclic amines [4].
Heterocyclic amines have been found to be carcinogenic and mutagenic, and have been linked to bowel, breast, prostate, and other cancers [5].
The higher the protein-based food is heated, the longer it takes, the less moisture content it has, and the more heterocyclic amines are typically produced [6].
Therefore, charred meat contains a lot of heterocyclic amines.
(Source: soogif)
300 °C: Start of "benzopyrene" production
Fat-rich foods, such as fatty lamb skewers, fish, etc., when the temperature exceeds 300 °C (such as exposure to open flames, and some studies have shown that more than 200 °C may be produced), the fat in them will undergo chemical reactions to produce a stronger class of carcinogens - polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons [4]. The most famous of these is benzopyrene [7].
Benzopyrene is more "lethal" than heterocyclic amines.
Benzopyrene is classified by the World Health Organization as the highest class of Class 1 carcinogens– explicitly carcinogenic to humans [2].
The smoke that comes out of the roast meat is also a source of benzopyrene. The higher the grilling temperature, the more benzopyrene is produced.
not necessarily!
Carcinogenicity is a matter of probability.
But put on a certain person, only 0 and 100%.
If the food is charred, it must have experienced high temperature burning, which must contain a large number of benzopyrene, heterocyclic amines or acrylamide and other carcinogens. Especially in the burned part, the carcinogen content is higher.
(Source: soogif)
However, "dose determines toxicity". There is also a lack of a clear quantitative relationship between how many carcinogens are in charred food and how much cancer risk can be increased.
Scientifically speaking, eating a little charred food occasionally doesn't necessarily cause cancer. But it does contain things that can cause carcinogens.
Of course, almost all of the nutrients in the burnt part of the food are destroyed, and there is no health benefit.
Therefore, if you can eat less, you can eat less, and if you can eat without eating, don't eat.
If the food is accidentally charred, the charred part should also be removed before eating.
As mentioned earlier, the higher the cooking temperature, the longer the time, the more scorched and mushy the food, and the more carcinogens are generated.
Therefore, try not to use too high a temperature to treat food, but also to avoid burning food.
As for the delicious small barbecue, it is okay to eat it once in a while, but pay attention to the following points to help reduce the formation of carcinogens.
1. Marinate the spices. Marinating the roasted meat in advance with spices such as garlic, ginger powder, and lemon juice not only tastes better, but also contains antioxidants that inhibit the formation of carcinogens [8].
2. Warm up in advance. Cut the ingredients smaller and heat them in the microwave and oven in advance to reduce the time spent baking over an open flame.
3. Keep away from flames. When food comes into direct contact with fire, a large amount of oil will drip into the fire and burn, which will produce smoke. The resulting carcinogens attach to the surface of the food. Of course, if possible, try not to choose charcoal grilling. The electric grill is also yummy.
(Source: soogif)
4. Smoke out as soon as possible. When grilling, try to exhaust the smoke as much as possible to prevent the carcinogens in the smoke from attaching to the surface of the food. Wrapping food in tin foil and then grilling it, the fat cannot be dripped out, and the chance of producing carcinogens is greatly reduced.
5. Flip more diligently. Doing so can make the contact time between meat and high temperature less, not only is it not easy to paste, the heat is more uniform, and the production of carcinogens is reduced.
While eating barbecue, you should also pay attention to the balance and diversity of your diet, such as adding some vegetables and fruits.
Have a little friend who loves to eat barbecue?
Forward this article to him!
bibliography
[1] International Agency for Research on Cancer. Acrylamide[J]. IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans,1994, 60: 389 -433.
[2] Sun Changhao, Editor-in-Chief, Nutrition and Food Hygiene (8th Edition)[M]. People's Medical Publishing House, 2017.
Chai Q Q, Wu W, Liu P F, et al. Research progress on formation mechanism, detection method and control measures of acrylamide in food[J]. Food & Machinery, 2021, 37(5):6.
[4] Yang Yuexin, Ge Keyou. Chinese Nutrition Science Encyclopedia (2nd Edition), People's Medical Publishing House, 2019
WU Yongning. Proteins in Cooking Food, Amino Acid Pyrolysis Products—Heterocyclic Amine I.[J]. Foreign Medicine: Journal of Hygiene, 1993, 20(5):5.
Lv Huichao, Peng Zengqi, Liu Senxuan, et al. Determination of barbecue flavor and heterocyclic amine formation in model system under mild conditions[J]. Food Science, 2015(8):6.
ZHU Xiaoling. Generation and Control of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons During Cooking[J]. Journal of Sichuan Culinary College, 2012(5):4.
[8] AICR. Five Steps for Cancer-Safe Grilling[Z]. 2018-06-26. https://www.aicr.org/news/five-steps-for-cancer-safe-grilling/
Author: Chen Luoluo
Editors: Zhang Jie, Zhao Yanan, Wang Yan
Typesetting: Han Ningning | Proofreader: Wu Yihe
Operations: Li Yongmin | Coordinator: Wu Jiaxiang