At the start of this week, Britain woke up to the terrible news that dark toast and roasted potatoes can trigger cancer. Apparently, when we overcook starchy foods, a dastardly chemical is released. It is called acrylamide. Government scientists advise us to eat lightly golden toast and less crispy roasted potatoes. We are further advised not to store potatoes in our fridges as this curious habit can also encourage the production of the dreaded acrylamide. See link
I must confess that before the news broke, I had never encountered the word acrylamide before but since I heard it I have not been able to sleep - tossing and turning, my head filled with pictures of slightly burnt toast and roasted potatoes and worries about contracting cancer. In my life I have eaten many loaves worth of burnt toast and a house-sized pile of roasted potatoes. Perhaps it is already too late for me. Even as I write this blogpost the cancer is probably already gnawing away at my insides!
Over the years there have been many health scares connected with foodstuffs. For example, we were once advised to make sure that we always peel carrots as carrot skin can absorb traces of the pesticides used in modern farming. Those pesticides are carcinogenic.
It's the same with processed meats and sausages. According to The World Health Organisation, each 50g of processed meat a day - the equivalent of one sausage, or less than two slices of bacon - increases the chance of developing bowel cancer by 18 per cent.
There's no hope for the human race. Everywhere we look there's cancer-inducing danger. In fact we might think of a supermarket as the place you go to gather the stuff that will kill you.
And here's the latest horror story - hot off the press. Scientists in the Department of Food Health at Gullible State University in Utah, USA are warning that too much consumption of fresh water can cause excessive urination. Apparently, drinking three pints of fresh water in an hour can stimulate powerful urination urges. Frequent urination can be injurious to health as each act of urination causes the body to expel vital digestive salts that protect the stomach and bowels from cancer-inducing elements contained within any normal diet.
We are advised to drastically reduce our water intake, replacing water with other liquids such as beer, wine and Coca Cola - a benevolent little American company which kindly sponsor the Department of Food Health at Gullible State University. By the way, it is even claimed that a litre of Coca Cola a day will counter any of the ill-effects caused by casual acrylamide consumption.
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ReplyDeleteDammit!! I was on my way to the toilet, too! Just as well I stopped off here at my computer and read your post before I reached my destination! Whew! That was close!
DeleteI've made a similar reference regarding all the words of "wisdom" that are tossed at us by the "experts" daily, and then quickly contradicted, in my latest post in my own blog, Yorkie.
I think we should just get drunk and forget about it all! :)
We can have a virtual drunken party via Skype. You can watch me guzzling Tetley's bitter and I can watch you swigging a case of Jacob's Creek. It will be so much fun! Hic!
DeleteSorry! Hic! I started before you, hic, Yorkie! After all, it is Australia Day here, and it's already 5.35 am 26h, hic, January! Hic!
DeleteI've finished off the case of Jacob's Creek Shiraz...and now I'm about to start on a cold Jacob's Creek Rosé because - hic - the suns up...and the heat is on its way! Cheers, mate!
Mrs Y.Pudding speaking now.... I have had to put hubby to bed. He was as drunk as a skunk. As a nurse who sees plenty of medical problems caused by excessive consumption of alcohol I advise you to reduce your intake madam.
DeleteHahahah-hic-hahaha-hic-oops!
DeleteEat, drink and be merry - and sod the acrylamides!
ReplyDeleteThe Acrylamides... sounds like an alien race in "Dr Who"!
DeleteIt's the same old story, isn't it? Every year our food and drink is laced with some new hazard. Coffee was unhealthy, and now it's not. Science keeps changing. Fortunately I'm in compliance with your Utah "findings" since I have almost entirely replaced my water consumption with wine. :)
ReplyDeletePhew! That's a relief. You have managed to kick the water habit. It's so goddamn addictive and the stuff is everywhere!
Deleteyour last paragraph is so on the money that corporations will be queuing up to sue you, Mr Pudding.
ReplyDeleteThey will never track me down Kylie. You may not have realised this but Yorkshire Pudding is a pseudonym. My real name is Robert H. Brague.
DeleteI'm always wary of these scare stories because most are in the way they are presented by the media rather than what science is actually telling us. Journalists tend to have little understanding of absolute and relative risk statistics as the recent story about living near busy roads causing Alzheimers illustrates.
ReplyDeleteThere's so much bad stuff happening in the world right now. Dis we really need the arylamide health advice? As you suggest, most of us could eat a container ship's worth of burnt toast and roasted potatoes and raise our risk of contracting cancer by 0.00001%. It is a risk that most of us would be very happy to take.
DeleteDon't drink, don't eat, don't breath - and you'll sure die soon. Or you enjoy your dark toast and roasted potatoes and die later. They'll find something everywhere. I've given up reading all this news.
ReplyDeleteBlogging can raise one's blood pressure and cause repetitive strain syndrome in one's fingers. Take care Beech!
DeleteWe all have a 100% chance of dying no matter what we eat, so I say enjoy what you like!
ReplyDeleteOkay I will Jennifer. Please mail me a bag of South Carolina grass!
DeleteWhat kind of grass, you naughty boy? LOL!
DeletePlease send menu and prices.
DeleteThere are always scientific results about what to eat and not. First Nutella, because of its palm oil, and now toast and potatoes!
ReplyDeleteBe careful when using toothpaste Blogoratti and try to limit your consumption of porridge.
DeleteMy family thinks all food is black, if I had to start cooking with care, they wouldn't know what was on their plate... LOL
ReplyDeleteSo your family are used to squid ink pasta, black olives and nori Debdor? Thanks for calling by.
DeleteThe levels of acrylamide that were tested on MICE, not humans, were far greater than what you would be exposed to if ate burnt toast and charred potatoes with every meal. That report fostered a needless change in guidelines by people who don't understand how to interpret the results of the study. HOWEVER - if you are a mouse, you might want to cut back!
ReplyDeleteI am not a mouse Wilma! I am a six foot hunk of raw Yorkshire masculinity! Thanks for visiting again.
DeleteI second 100 % what Jennifer has said!
ReplyDeleteDebdor's comment made me laugh out loud :-)
I wonder if Debdor's family always eat in pitch darkness when all food appears black.
DeleteWell, I'm glad that Pudding's Research council has at least found the benefits of a good beer!
ReplyDeleteWhen The Micro Manager next asks what you want from the supermarket say you'd like a case of Molson Export,
DeleteThat stuff! I don't think so!
DeleteWell done :)
ReplyDeleteI used to have a fridge magnet that said "Dinner will be ready when the smoke alarm goes off." I thought I was burning everything at some micro level because the darn thing went off nearly every meal. Then we found out it was defective. I don't know what my point is there, but I'm sure there is one.
Your point is wiggling like the pointer of a defective compass discovered inside a Christmas cracker. You should have made sandwiches instead.
DeleteWhere do you come up with this stuff?! That's why I like to tune in here, so keep it up, please :)
DeleteIs it really called Gullible State Uni? If not them it certainly ought to be.
ReplyDeleteI must confess that I made that bit up Mrs Weaver!
DeleteCouldn't we have a competition to decide which will be the next big scare? There must be one coming up soon.
ReplyDeleteI gave up with all these scares years ago. Usually it's just someone who wants to make a name for themselves, or try prove that the immense funding they received from the government wasn't entirely wasted on expensive lunches, first class travel and an over abundance of paper clips !
A study from The University of Benidorm has concluded that consuming an abundance of paper clips could be seriously injurious to one's health.
DeleteThanks for calling by again CG.
Thank God the newspapers aren't sensationalist!
ReplyDeletehttps://chronicleflask.com/2017/01/23/is-acrylamide-in-your-toast-really-going-to-give-you-cancer/
Thanks for the cool-headed and informative link Tim. I am just off to have a roasted potatoes and burnt toast sandwich!
DeleteBut a litre of cola would rot your teeth so you cannot win! If it's not hysteria about listeria or shrugs about bugs, it's most about toast. So much scare-mongering. A little of what you fancy does you good, but all in moderation, is what I say. We've all got to die eventually. We might as well be happy in the process.
ReplyDeleteYour philosophy is so sane ADDY. You are a very sane lady. The world needs plenty of sanity right now.
DeleteWell, I don't like burnt stuff any how so that's OK with me !! There's always something new that's going to poison you and often it's the stuff you like. Personally I'm just going to die from overeating if I'm not careful !! On the diet wagon from MONDAY !!!
ReplyDelete