Do air fryers cause cancer?
Expert: The key is to change the way you cook
Experts to solve puzzles: Wang Lin, deputy chief physician of the Department of Oncology, Guangzhou Red Cross Hospital, postdoctoral fellow in oncology
"Everything can be fried", fried chicken wings, French fries, fried ribs... Thinking of these, do you salivate immediately?
Today, the air fryer has become an "Internet celebrity" appliance. The oil-free, low-fat, and non-flammable air fryer has made friends who love fried food a treasure.
But there are also many people who are confused. Since it is "fried", is the food fried in the air fryer healthy?
Can it cause cancer?
If I have to use an air fryer, how can I use it to be healthier?
The reporter specially interviewed Wang Lin, deputy chief physician and postdoctoral fellow of oncology at Guangzhou Red Cross Hospital.
He said that the air fryer uses high temperature to complete the heating of food. Therefore, in the process of cooking food, it is possible to produce some harmful chemicals such as acrylamide, but its average exposure in our diet ( That is, the intake) is very low, and it is unscientific to talk about toxicity aside from the dose.
"Instead of worrying about the cancer caused by the air fryer, it is better to change the cooking method, less frying and frying, and try to cook the ingredients by steaming, boiling and other methods."
Text and photos / All-media reporter Zhang Qingmei of Guangzhou Daily, correspondent Sun Bingqian and Hu Yingyi
Column planning/Guangzhou Daily all media reporters Cao Teng, Wen Junhua
An air fryer is the equivalent of a powerful hair dryer
According to Wang Lin, we must first understand the working principle of the air fryer. The secret of making food crispy is not "frying", but "baking".
The heating tube and fan inside the air fryer can circulate the hot air in the pan at high speed.
In the process of blowing hot air, the ingredients are dehydrated at high temperature, and at the same time, the surface is baked to become crispy, and the effect of "frying" is achieved, which is equivalent to a powerful version of a hair dryer or an oven with a fan.
Relying on its "high-speed circulating air" technology, using the air fryer to cook foods that contain oil, such as meat, seafood, etc., does not need to be oiled; when cooking vegetables and other non-fat foods, only need to brush the surface. A thin layer of oil can also give vegetables a smooth and shiny appearance.
Compared with real frying with oil, using an air fryer can indeed reduce the intake of oil, which is indeed relatively healthy.
Dosage aside, it is unscientific to talk about toxicity
Wang Lin introduced that in response to the doubt that "things fried in an air fryer will cause cancer", he deliberately checked a lot of information.
The earliest question came from a test report released by the Korean Consumer Agency in December 2019.
The report shows that if you put frozen French fries at a high temperature of over 200 degrees Celsius and cook them according to the product instructions, 4 out of 10 air fryers were found to have excessive levels of "acrylamide" in the fries; Expose the potential carcinogenic hazards of air fryers.
According to Wang Lin, acrylamide is indeed a carcinogen and has been listed as a Class 2A carcinogen by the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), which means that it is a substance with unclear evidence of causing human cancer. Strictly speaking, Its carcinogenic effect is only one possibility.
Acrylamide is ubiquitous in the daily diet, it's just a matter of how much.
As long as the temperature exceeds 120°C when heating food, acrylamides are suspected carcinogens.
When the air fryer is working, the internal temperature of the container is between 180°C and 200°C, and there is indeed the possibility of producing Class 2A carcinogens.
Some scholars in my country have conducted relevant research on nearly 350 kinds of foods on the market. The results found that acrylamide can be detected in most food samples, but its average exposure (ie intake) in our diet is different. It is relatively low and does not meet the standard of carcinogenicity. "So it is unscientific to talk about toxicity aside from the dose."
Moreover, the air fryer itself is only a heating tool. If you have to say that it is carcinogenic, even if you do not use an air fryer, use ordinary pots to fry, fry, braise, etc. at high temperature. If the temperature exceeds 120 °C, propylene may appear. amide.
Adjusting the way you cook is the key
Wang Lin said that instead of worrying about the production of acrylamide in the food made by the air fryer, it is better to adjust the cooking method, control and eat less fried, roasted and fried food, and try to cook the ingredients by steaming, boiling and other methods to retain the taste of the food itself. and nutrition, but also more natural and healthy.
Pay special attention to the following points:
First of all, try to eat less high-temperature fried foods.
Fried foods are often high in fat and are high-energy foods. Eating too much can easily lead to excessive energy intake.
Secondly, when using the air fryer, do not set the temperature too high, try to keep it within 120°C, and do not take too long, preferably about 10 minutes (one or two minutes for vegetarian food, and slightly different for meat dishes depending on the thickness of the ingredients). The difference, generally only needs to be fried until the surface is slightly yellow and not burnt), and it can also avoid generating too many potentially harmful ingredients.
Finally, be careful not to use too much seasoning, especially salt.