Myths And Facts About Carcinogenic Products

Many of us have heard about carcinogenic products. What food is the most dangerous for human health?

Many of us have heard about carcinogenic products. What food is the most dangerous for human health?

Carcinogens are substances (or other agents) that can cause a malignant process. Carcinogens can be physical, chemical or biological in nature. For a long time, it was believed that the main carcinogenic substances in food are formed when products are fried , but today the list of products that may contain dangerous substances has significantly increased. In this article, we will tell you which products contain the most carcinogens.

"Smoky" substances

Constant air pollution leads to the fact that many polycyclic hydrocarbons, which have a carcinogenic effect on the body, began to enter plant products. There are very few of these substances in the body of animals, as they are quickly excreted naturally. However, if meat or fish is exposed to smoke, the content of polycyclic hydrocarbons in these products will increase dramatically.

Genetically modified products

The GMO-free label has a reassuring effect on many consumers. However, are genetically modified products so dangerous?! The question is quite controversial, since large-scale studies on the effect of GMOs on the body have not yet been conducted. Some animal experiments show a negative effect of GMOs on the body of mice and rats, but it remains unclear whether this is caused by GMOs or an unbalanced diet. For example, if you feed a mouse or rat only one soy or wheat, the effect will be negative, even if you use a non-transgenic product. It is not known for certain whether GMOs contribute to the development of malignant diseases.

Nitrates and nitrites

The widespread use of nitrate fertilizers in agriculture leads to an increased content of these substances in vegetables and fruits. In the human body, nitrates can turn into nitro compounds that have carcinogenic properties. At the same time, frying, smoking, salting and canning significantly increase the content of nitro compounds in products.

It is worth noting that the process of converting nitrates into nitro compounds occurs at room temperature. Nitrates are also easily transformed into dangerous nitrites. At a temperature of +2 degrees Celsius, this process stops, so it is important to store products (especially root crops ) in the refrigerator. Most modern refrigerators allow you to set the chamber temperature at +2 degrees.

Dioxins

Dioxins are a group of organic substances containing chlorine. Mainly, dioxins are formed during burning of plastic products (bottles, packaging film, bags). Also, some amount of dioxin is formed during water chlorination.

A large amount of dioxins is formed during the burning of garbage, so increased atmospheric pollution with these substances is noted near waste incineration plants. Almost 90% of dioxins enter the human body with food, mainly fish, meat, dairy products and drinking water. In the human body, dioxins are deposited in adipose tissue, have a harmful effect on DNA, reduce immunity, which increases the likelihood of the development of a malignant process.

Pesticides

All, without exception, pesticides have a poisonous effect on the body. Some of the pesticides can accumulate in the body, and when a certain concentration is reached, cause an oncological process.

Heavy metals

Heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, arsenic, cobalt, mercury, nickel and others enter food products from the polluted environment. Most often, modern man is faced with arsenic contamination, inorganic compounds of which enter drinking water from geological rocks. Arsenic is a carcinogen and can cause cancer of the skin, bladder, kidneys, lungs, liver and other organs.