Scientists from Stockholm University confirmed 20 years ago that it is still better to scrape off burnt pieces of toast.

They discovered that when we heat certain foods, such as potatoes, bread, cookies, cereal, or coffee, to temperatures above 120°C, the sugar reacts with the amino acid asparagine to form a substance called acrylamide.

This process is called the Mayard reaction - and it is he who causes the food to brown and gives it a characteristic taste.

At the same time, scientists discovered that acrylamide is carcinogenic to animals - but only in doses that far exceed those contained in our food.

The BBC writes about it.

According to the European Food Safety Agency, acrylamide can also increase the risk of cancer in humans, especially children.

But scientists who study its influence on humans have not yet been able to come to an unequivocal conclusion.

"After almost 30 years of classifying acrylamide as a 'probable human carcinogen', there is still conflicting evidence as to whether it is actually carcinogenic to humans. However, if we continue to do further research in humans, we will be able to get enough data to still classify acrylamide as a human carcinogen," says Fatima Saleh, an associate professor at the Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences at Beirut Arab University in Lebanon.

However, scientists are sure that acrylamide is neurotoxic for humans, that is, it can affect the nervous system.

The exact mechanism for this is still not fully understood, but it is thought that acrylamide may attack structural proteins in nerve cells or suppress anti-inflammatory systems that protect nerve cells from damage.

The toxic effects of acrylamide have been shown to be cumulative, meaning that consuming small amounts of acrylamide over a long period of time can increase the risk of long-term organ damage.

In particular, evidence from animal studies suggests that long-term exposure to dietary acrylamide may also increase the risk of neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia and may be associated with neurodevelopmental disorders in children, says Federica Laguzzi, associate professor of cardiovascular and of food epidemiology at the Institute of Environmental Medicine of the Karolinska Institute in Sweden.

"Acrylamide passes through all tissues, including the placenta, because it has a low molecular weight and dissolves in water," says Laguzzi, who found a link between higher acrylamide intake by pregnant women and lower baby weight, head circumference and height at birth.

Laboratory studies in rats have also found a link between acrylamide consumption and cancers of the mammary glands, thyroid gland, testicles and uterus, which also suggests a hormonal influence, but does not automatically imply a similar risk in humans.

One of the biggest challenges is accurately measuring the amount of acrylamide we consume.

"Acrylamide is well established to be genotoxic and can cause cancer in animals, but the relationship between acrylamide and cancer in humans is still unclear," says Laguzzi. results".

Scientific interest in the health risks of acrylamide has increased again in recent years, says Laguzzi.

She hopes that within a few years the potential link between acrylamide consumption and cancer risk will be better studied.

Meanwhile, the habit of scraping off burnt pieces of toast is a very good idea.

It will be recalled that scientists named a daily habit that worsens the work of the heart.

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