Yaya's (pseudonym) grandmother has been living in the countryside. In her kitchen, the aroma of firewood is always permeating, and the years are merciless, but grandma's body is getting worse and worse than before. Whenever Yaya (not her real name) comes home to visit her, she can always be seen with her bent back, holding a thick firewood in one hand and a heavy pot in the other, laboriously carrying her to the stove.
For such a picture, Yaya (pseudonym) always regrets it. She knew that her grandmother was old, and the hard work she did was far more difficult than when she was younger. In order to reduce the burden on her grandmother, Yaya (pseudonym) made up her mind to buy a rice cooker for her grandmother.
Rice cookers are a product of modern technology that can bring convenience to life. It doesn't require firewood and doesn't require a lot of physical exertion. For an elderly person like Grandma Yaya (not her real name), using a rice cooker to cook rice is undoubtedly a wise choice. So Yaya (pseudonym) carefully selected a rice cooker and gave it to her grandmother.
Not long after my grandmother started using the rice cooker, rumors of an accident quietly spread. Neighbors suddenly came to advise grandma: "I heard that the World Health Organization has issued a warning, the inner liner of the rice cooker is poisonous, and it will induce liver cancer if used for a long time!" This shocked both grandma and Yaya (pseudonym).
01. Does a rice cooker induce cancer?
As a common kitchen appliance, the coating material of the inner liner of the rice cooker is one of the important issues that users are concerned about. Generally speaking, there are two main common materials for the inner coating of rice cookers, namely Teflon and ceramic.
Teflon coating: Teflon, commonly known as polytetrafluoroethylene, is a very high-temperature, corrosion-resistant material that is often used to make kitchen utensils such as nonstick pans.
Teflon coatings are safe under normal conditions because they are stable and do not decompose easily to release toxic substances. Only at extremely high temperatures (above about 300 degrees) can decomposition occur and harmful substances are released.
Ceramic coating: Ceramic coating is an environmentally friendly material with the advantages of wear resistance and high temperature resistance. The ceramic coating does not contain harmful substances and is harmless to the human body.
Temperature effects
Generally, the temperature of household rice cookers is about 180 degrees, and in this temperature range, Teflon and ceramic coatings can work normally without decomposition. When the rice cooker is used normally, the liner coating does not reach the decomposition temperature and does not release harmful substances.
The World Health Organization's warning does not apply to rice cookers because under normal use, the rice cooker does not generate a high enough temperature for the liner coating to break down, so there is no risk of carcinogenesis.
02. The reasons for the high incidence of liver cancer in mainland China are revealed
Fatty liver: Fatty liver is a condition in which there is excessive accumulation of fat in liver tissue. In the process of fatty liver lesions, the fat content in hepatocytes increases significantly, often accompanied by varying degrees of hepatocyte damage and inflammation.
Influencing factors include lifestyle factors such as unreasonable diet, excessive intake of high-sugar and high-fat foods, lack of exercise, and obesity. These factors can lead to an excessive accumulation of fat in the liver, eventually forming a fatty liver.
Mouldy food: Carcinogens such as aflatoxins may be produced in mouldy food. Aflatoxin is a strong carcinogen that can cause liver damage if ingested over a long period of time.
Moldy foods are commonly found in moist, unventilated environments, such as improperly stored foods such as rice, flour, and beans, or processed foods such as bread and pastries that have been stored for long periods of time.
Hepatitis B virus infection: Hepatitis B virus infection is one of the important causes of high incidence of liver cancer in mainland China. Hepatitis B virus is transmitted through blood, sexual contact, mother-to-child transmission, etc., and can cause chronic hepatitis after infection, and eventually evolve into liver cirrhosis and liver cancer.
In mainland China, many people are infected with the hepatitis B virus when they are infants and young children, and long-term carrier of the virus leads to liver damage and increases the risk of liver cancer.
Alcoholism: Alcoholism refers to long-term, excessive alcohol consumption, and the ethanol in alcohol is metabolized in the body into acetaldehyde, which is toxic to the liver and can lead to liver cell damage and inflammatory reactions.
Long-term alcohol abuse increases the risk of liver cirrhosis and liver cancer, and is one of the risk factors for the high incidence of liver cancer in mainland China.
03. Five key points for preventing liver cancer
Avoid eating moldy food: Inspect food regularly, pay attention to the quality of food and the storage environment, and avoid eating moldy and spoiled food, especially corn, peanuts and other foods that are easily contaminated by mold. When storing food, keep the food storage environment dry and ventilated to avoid moisture and mold.
Limit alcohol consumption: Limit the amount of alcohol you drink, not too much, and avoid long-term alcohol abuse. Choose healthy ways to drink, such as drinking with meals, and avoid drinking on an empty stomach to reduce damage to the liver.
Pay attention to the treatment of viral hepatitis: For patients who have been infected with hepatitis B virus, it is necessary to actively receive standardized antiviral therapy to control viral replication, reduce liver inflammation, and reduce the risk of liver cancer.
Pay attention to fatty liver: actively adjust the dietary structure, reduce the intake of high-sugar and high-fat foods, and increase the intake of fiber-rich foods such as vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. Increase the appropriate amount of exercise, promote the metabolism and consumption of fat, and reduce the burden on the liver.
Regular liver cancer screening: For people with a high incidence of liver cancer, such as hepatitis virus carriers, patients with liver cirrhosis, etc., regular liver cancer screening should be carried out, regular physical examination is an important means to detect early liver cancer lesions, timely detection of early lesions of liver cancer, can improve the success rate of treatment, prolong survival.
While rumors about rice cookers causing liver cancer are worrying, this is not the case. We should establish a correct concept of health, not believe rumors, but should make healthy life choices based on scientific evidence and the recommendations of authoritative institutions. The incidence of liver cancer is related to many factors, and the prevention of liver cancer requires us to start from all aspects of life, focusing on healthy diet, active treatment of diseases, regular physical examinations, etc.
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