By Brandi Bunch
Contributing writer
The Internet excels at delivering information in seconds, but it can be just as effective at displaying old stories and turning them into scares.
Fitness mogul and public figure Jillian Michaels, who has over one million “likes” on Facebook alone and a massive following thanks to her time on “The Biggest Loser,” posted the image of a sign in McDonald’s bearing a warning about cancer to her wall on Jan. 12.
Michaels accompanied the photo, which was shown to her by a fan, with the statement, “Apparently California is requiring a warning label be put on McDonald’s food. Like cigarettes. This is why I tell you never to eat this crap or feed it to your kids.”
However, California’s history of french fries and warning labels began in 2005. The state claimed that the fries contain acrylamide, a chemical which, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, is “produced industrially for use in products such as plastics, grouts, water treatment products and cosmetics.”
The state tried to require the warning label under Proposition 65, also known as the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986. According to oehha.ca.gov., this act is “intended by its authors to protect California citizens and the State’s drinking water sources from chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm and to inform citizens about exposures to such chemicals.”
The suit to require the warning was originally brought against several restaurant chains and producers of packaged potato products after the presence of acrylamide in french fries and potato chips was discovered in 2002.
According to foodnavigator-usa.com, the suit was withdrawn in 2006 because of the nature of acrylamide and the way the chemical is created in these foods.
FDA.gov explains that “acrylamide is a chemical that can form in some foods during high-temperature cooking processes, such as frying, roasting and baking. Acrylamide in food forms from sugars and an amino acid that are naturally present in food; it does not come from food packaging or the environment.”
The FDA goes on to state, “Acrylamide has probably always been present in cooked foods. However, acrylamide was first detected in certain foods in April 2002.” Additionally, the World Health Organization’s website notes that “elevated levels of acrylamide have been found in home cooked foods, as well as pre-cooked, packaged and processed foods.”
Foodnavigator-usa.com states that in 2008, several of the chip companies, Frito-Lay and Lance Inc. among them, agreed to work to lower acrylamide levels in their products, while restaurants agreed to post acrylamide warnings.
Since then, while additional studies have been conducted, the presence of acrylamide in foods has largely been ignored by consumers.
The FDA explains that acrylamide is present in many foods that people eat every day, including, “foods made from plants, such as potato products, grain products or coffee. Acrylamide does not form, or forms at lower levels, in dairy, meat and fish products. Generally, acrylamide is more likely to accumulate when cooking is done for longer periods or at higher temperatures.”
However, the site goes on to say that this does not mean that consumers should stay away from foods that are fried, roasted or baked, adding that these foods are key components of a regular diet.
The FDA’s advice on dealing with acrylamide is “that consumers adopt a healthy eating plan, consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, that emphasizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains and fat-free or low-fat milk and milk products; includes lean meats, poultry, fish, beans, eggs and nuts; and is low in saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, salt (sodium) and added sugars.”
As for the actual risk of cancer, FDA.gov claims, “Acrylamide caused cancer in animals in studies where animals were exposed to acrylamide at very high doses. Acrylamide causes nerve damage in people exposed to very high levels at work. FDA has not yet determined the exact public health impact, if any, of acrylamide from the much lower levels found in foods.”
There is also the fact that the levels of acrylamide shown to cause cancer in animals are much, much higher than the trace amounts present in food products.
The website for the Center for Consumer Freedom claims that “in order to be in any real danger from acrylamide, a person of average weight would have to consume 62 pounds of potato chips or 182 pounds of french fries every day for a lifetime.”