Acrylamide: in which foods it is found and what the European regulation says

In recent days the spotlight has been turned back on the content of acrylamide (a potentially carcinogenic molecule) in the foods and on the fact that the European Commission has not yet commented on modification of the current regulation community. But what is acrylamide? What foods is it found in? How dangerous is it? Let’s clarify.

What is Acrylamide?

As can be read on the website ofEfsathe European Food Safety Agency, theacrylamide is a chemical compound that forms naturally during the cooking at high temperatures (frying, baking and grilling, industrial processing at more than 120°C with low humidity) of foodstuffs that contain starches, for example bread and potatoes. Acrylamide is one of the products of Maillard reactionthe one that we have all come to know thanks to the television program masterchef and which gives the dish a toasted appearance: the starches (which are sugars) react with theasparagine amino acid producing acrylamide.

What foods is acrylamide found in?

The foods in which it is found are potato chips potatoesfrench fries, cookiesbread, crackers, cereal snacks, etc. Acrylamide is also found in coffee and in dried fruit, due to the roasting. Products fried potato-based contribute up to 49% of the average exposure of adults, coffee up to 34% and soft bread up to 23%.

Although it is not food, it must be said that acrylamide is also contained in cigarette smoke and in the blood of smokers it can be found in concentrations much higher than the average value.

Is acrylamide dangerous?

Precisely because of the way in which it originates, it is probable that acrylamide has existed since cooking was invented, but it was first found in food only in 2002. Since then, scientists have begun to study and test it safety on animal models – research that has brought out some critical issues. We have to wait until 2015 for EFSA to publish its first comprehensive evaluation of risks deriving from the presence of acrylamide in food, which states that the substance “potentially increases the risk of developing cancer in consumers of all age groups”. THE childrenwho have a lower body weight, are more exposed to possible effects.

According to laboratory animal results, acrylamide in foods is absorbed from the intestines and distributed throughout the body through the blood. However, it is not the acrylamide itself that causes problems, but its metabolite, the glycidamide. This molecule would cause mutations in the DNA cell phone increasing the risk of developing tumorsbut could also be responsible for neurological problems and of fertility in males.