How to eat ten "dark foods" scientifically

Writer : Kang Kang / Editor : Wang He / https://www.aboluowang.com/2021/0317/1569382.html / Translation, editing : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

Introduction

 There have been media reports on the high incidence of gastric cancer, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, etc. in China, and an important reason for the increasing incidence of these cancers is the eating habits of modern people-many foods that are considered "delicious" actually contain carcinogens. To this end, even the media has published a "blacklist of the top ten foods that are most likely to cause cancer", which is daunting. In fact, this black list is not scientific. For these "dark foods", how to eat them scientifically is the key.

News (1)

[Sunflower seeds] Be sure to spit out the bitter mold

Internet transmission: Sunflower grows fast and easily absorbs the heavy metals lead, cadmium, and nickel in the soil. People eating these heavy metals will be harmful to the body, and eating sunflower seeds will consume a lot of choline, which will hinder the metabolism of fat in the body and cause the liver to accumulate a large amount of fat that seriously affects the function of liver cells.

Dispel doubts: In fact, many grains, vegetables, and mushrooms grow faster than sunflower seeds. According to this statement, wouldn't they have a greater ability to absorb heavy metals? To avoid eating heavy metals, the key is to purify the land. Otherwise any plants that grow on it will have "heavy metals." Peanuts, almonds, cashews, and pistachios, including sunflower seeds, are all nut foods. Ingesting a small handful a day is good for health. But what needs to be reminded is that nuts are prone to oxidative rancidity and moldy deterioration. Aflatoxin in spoiled nuts is a proven strong carcinogen. If you taste bitter or musty taste when eating, you must spit it out immediately and rinse your mouth.

News (2)

[Chewing gum] Chewing for a long time affects the oral muscles

According to the Internet: Although the natural rubber in the chewing gum is non-toxic, the white gum used in the production process is added with toxic vulcanization accelerators, anti-aging agents and other additives, which can stimulate the stomach and cause discomfort. Aspartame, the sugar substitute in chewing gum, is also a carcinogen.

Dispel doubts: Chewing gum will contain certain additives and sugar substitute aspartame, but we need to understand that some additives are still at a stage where they may or are suspected of causing cancer. As long as the intake is within a safe range, food additives are still safe. If ingested in large amounts, it may cause health risks. It should be noted that chewing gum should not be chewed for more than 20 minutes because too much chewing can cause oral muscle strain.

News (3)

[MSG] One plus MSG, put less salt

Internet transmission: Half of MSG is L-glutamate, which is good for the body, but the other half is D-glutamate, which is not available to the body, which turns into free radicals that are harmful to the body. Excessive intake will reduce the body's use of calcium and magnesium, which may lead to calcium deficiency and affect the strength of teeth and bones. It can also cause short-term headaches, palpitation, nausea and other symptoms, and also have adverse effects on the human reproductive system.

Dispel doubts: Whether it is the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the World Health Organization or the European Union, they have all passed the safety monitoring of MSG. So far, there is no research to prove that MSG is harmful to the human body. However, MSG does contain a certain amount of sodium. After adding MSG to dishes, you can reduce the amount of salt.

News (4)

[Pig Liver] High cholesterol, but also contains macronutrients

Internet transmission: Each kilogram of pig liver contains more than 400 milligrams of cholesterol. Too much cholesterol can cause atherosclerosis. At the same time, the liver is a detoxifying organ, which will accumulate a large amount of metabolites such as astragalus toxin, antibiotics, and sleeping pills, so pig liver is not suitable eat.

Dispelling doubts: Pork liver cholesterol is indeed high, so try not to eat it for people with "three highs". Pork liver is indeed an organ for metabolism and detoxification but this does not mean that it cannot be eaten. As a natural food, pig liver also contains a lot of nutrients, especially iron. The key depends on who is to eat it and how to eat it. A small number of times is a good method. In addition, it is best to buy branded pork liver, which is safer to cook at home.

News (5)

[Fried dough sticks, Pho, Rice Noodles, Vermicelli] Do not eat more than once a week

According to the Internet: These foods must be made with alum (potassium aluminum sulfate). If you eat these foods often, it can easily lead to anemia, osteoporosis, and even Alzheimer's disease. In addition, over-oxidation of the oil reused in deep-fried dough sticks is also harmful to health.

Dispel doubts: Indeed, the oil in the cooking process of fried dough sticks is generally used repeatedly, causing excessive oxidation. Phosphorus and vermicelli foods are also made with a lot of alum. If they are eaten regularly, they will have a certain impact on health. But if you do not eat it every day, there will be no health risks if you do not eat it more than once a week.

News (6)

[Pickled vegetables, dried radish] There are special eating times

Internet transmission: Long-term eating will cause sodium and mercury to stay in the body, increasing the risk of heart disease. In addition, it also contains nitrite amines or uses formalin as a preservative for those who have bad industries. These are carcinogens.

Dispel doubts: Pickles and pickled vegetables have different characteristics due to different preparation methods and different additives. But almost all pickles and pickled vegetables will contain nitrite, which is indeed a carcinogen. However, the content of nitrite is lower within 24 hours and 20 days after salting is added to the food. Therefore, if you like to eat pickled vegetables, try to eat pickled vegetables for two periods of time: make good Within 24 hours or more than 20 days thereafter.

News (7)

[Commercial bottled fruit juice drinks] mostly blended with sugar and flavour

Internet transmission: These drinks have too much sugar added, which is more calorie than soda.

Dispelling doubts: Most sweet drinks are blended with sugar and flavor. In addition to sugar, these sweet drinks have almost no other nutrients, and the human body needs to consume a lot of Vitamins B and C when metabolizing sugar. At the same time, if the freshly squeezed juice machine is not cleaned in time after it is squeezed, it is easy to breed bacteria and contaminate the next squeezed juice. Many restaurants and beverage outlets also add various additives to the freshly squeezed juice, and even the pulp may be is fake. Therefore, it is best to eat raw fruits directly.

News (8)

[Preserved eggs] Not more than once a week

Internet transmission: Preserved eggs contain a certain amount of lead, and regular consumption can cause lead poisoning in the human body. When a person is lead poisoned, the main manifestations are insomnia, anemia, hyperactivity, and mental decline.

Dispelling doubts: Preserved eggs made by traditional methods will indeed cause a certain amount of lead to remain in preserved eggs. Modern new technology uses zinc salt to drastically reduce the lead content. Occasional consumption will not affect health. The important thing is not to eat too many times, not more than once a week, and to buy brand-packaged products through formal channels.

News (9)

[Stinky tofu] Doctor's "least recommended food"

Internet transmission: Stinky tofu is easily contaminated by microorganisms during the fermentation process. It also contains a large amount of volatile base nitrogen and hydrogen sulfide, which are decomposing substances of protein and are harmful to the human body.

Dispel doubts: The process of making stinky tofu is easy to add "smelly essence". This kind of stinky tofu smell that smells quite "classic" is actually a kind of chemical raw material; secondly, the black part of stinky tofu tends to accumulate heavy metals and toxic substances. The residue of stinky tofu is easy to cause cancer; again, the oil used to make stinky tofu is also used repeatedly, which is easy to over-oxidize. The safety of the stinky tofu at the roadside stalls is even more unsafe, let alone eaten. It can be said that this is the "least recommended food" for doctors.

News (10)

[Popcorn] "Junk Food" produced in theatres

Internet transmission: The converter for making popcorn contains lead, so that the lead content in the popcorn can be as high as 10 mg/500 g, which will cause serious health risks to the human body, especially to children’s hematopoietic system, nerve and digestive system. If you eat too much, you may get popcorn lungs.

Dispelling doubts: Popcorn made by traditional methods has a certain risk of lead ingestion as stated in the Internet. However, the possibility of suffering from "popcorn lung" is extremely small. There has been a case in the United States before, and it has not been repeated. There are related case reports.

In recent years, people have eaten more popcorn sold at the entrance of theatres. There is a trend of high sugar and salt, absolutely high-calorie, high-fat, and high-additive foods. Therefore, it is necessary to control the intake when eating to reduce health risks. It is recommended that two people share a small cup each time.