4 kinds of vegetables have been included in the 'carcinogenic list', true or false? It's best not to touch these 3 things
Sister Wang went to the vegetable market to pick up cabbage and found that many cabbage had small black spots on them. She felt very strange, "Why are there so many black spots on your cabbage, is this edible?"
The elder brother who bought the vegetables came over, "Why can't you eat it? This is normal. Whose cabbage doesn't have a few black spots."
"I always read on the Internet that this kind of food cannot be eaten, that kind of food is carcinogenic, and I don't even know what to eat."
The eldest brother smiled, "If you want to read it online, you can't drink the water, because everyone who drank the water died in the end."
As soon as these words came out, everyone around laughed.
Why do Chinese cabbage grow black spots? The vegetables that are rumored to be inedible on the Internet, including bracken, pickles, rootless bean sprouts, Houttuynia cordata, etc., are really carcinogenic?
1. There are small black spots on Chinese cabbage, can it be eaten?
It turns out that there are small black spots on Chinese cabbage, the scientific name is "Chinese cabbage black spot disease" or "Chinese cabbage sesame spot disease", which mainly occurs on the inside of the petiole of Chinese cabbage, due to the distortion of the cell wall of the petiole cells of Chinese cabbage. Deformation, and then a lot of black matter gathered at the distortion deformation.
So, will the small black spots on Chinese cabbage be harmful to health?
In fact, the appearance of small black spots may be caused by excessive nitrogen fertilizer application, resulting in damage to the cell membrane structure, or improper storage and transportation, and may even be related to the variety of Chinese cabbage.
Although the small black dots are ugly, they are ugly, but if the number is not large, the cabbage is not corrupt, and the small black dots are still edible.
After all, small black spot disease is a physiological disease and basically has no adverse effects on the human body.
If the number of small black spots is relatively large, which has caused the cabbage to rot and deteriorate, then do not eat it , so as to avoid health risks.
2. 4 kinds of vegetables are on the "carcinogenic list"?
In the era of cancer discoloration, many foods have been charged with carcinogenic "crimes". But do they really cause cancer?
1. Does bracken cause cancer?
Substances such as proteroside, fern lactam, phenyloxalic acid, and flavonoids contained in bracken are indeed carcinogens. Among them, protoferrin is the most carcinogenic and is a genotoxic carcinogen. After hydrolysis, it will produce dienone compounds, which can change human DNA and produce strong carcinogenic effects.
However, the so-called carcinogen regardless of dose is a hooligan. Whether bracken is carcinogenic mainly depends on the intake .
Studies have found that if a person eats 350 grams to 3.5 kilograms of bracken a day, it will take 20 consecutive years to cause cancer .
Bracken is currently classified as a 2B carcinogen . That is, it has good evidence of carcinogenicity in animals and insufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in humans. The carcinogen in bracken is classified as class 3 carcinogens , that is, the evidence of carcinogenicity to animals and humans is insufficient.
Of course, in order to reduce the risk, when we eat bracken, it is best to blanch the water several times, and try to avoid eating bracken salad.
2. Can pickles cause cancer?
The nitrite contained in pickles is indeed a veritable carcinogen, but not all pickles contain nitrite, and it depends on how the pickles are pickled.
Generally speaking, there are 3 ways to pickle pickles: one is fermented with acetic acid bacteria, the other is fermented with lactic acid bacteria, and the third is pickled with salt. Among them, fermentation with acetic acid bacteria or lactic acid bacteria belongs to biological fermentation and does not produce nitrite .
With salt pickling, although nitrite will be produced, it will only be produced in large quantities on the 2-10th day of pickling . After that, the content of nitrite will be greatly reduced, and it will not cause much impact on the human body.
If you are still concerned, you can eat pickles that have been stored for a long time, or you can boil them in hot water, or add some lemon juice and eat them together.
3. Rootless bean sprouts are highly toxic and carcinogenic?
Some people say that rootless bean sprouts cannot be eaten, they are highly toxic, and even cause cancer. This statement comes from a plant growth regulator 2,4-D that is used in bean sprouts .
Low concentrations of 2,4-D can promote the growth of bean sprouts and inhibit the formation of roots and shoots. In agricultural production, high concentrations of 2,4-D can also be used as herbicides. That is to say, in the state of high concentration, human ingestion of 2,4-D may cause poisoning . But rest assured, the 2,4-D used in bean sprouts is far from being poisonous, let alone carcinogenic.
However, in addition to 2,4-D, 6-benzyl adenine, gibberellin, sodium 4-chlorophenoxyacetate, and ethylene can also be used for bean sprouts.
In China, they were once approved for use in bean sprouts as food additives, but later because bean sprouts are not processed foods, their use in bean sprouts is illegal, not carcinogenic but illegal.
4. Houttuynia cordata contains aristolochic acid, which is carcinogenic?
Aristolochic acid, you must have heard that a common substance in traditional Chinese medicine is carcinogenic. At present, aristolochic acid is classified as a class 1 carcinogen and has definite carcinogenicity to humans. Studies have found that aristolochic acid is closely related to liver cancer, and the more intake, the more likely to develop liver cancer.
However, it should be emphasized that the one with strong carcinogenicity is aristolochic acid I. The misunderstood Houttuynia cordata contains aristololactams BII, AII and FII .
First, they are not the same thing as aristolochic acid I, and secondly, there is no scientific evidence that the aristololactams BII, AII and FII in Houttuynia cordata are toxic or carcinogenic.
3. These are the real carcinogenic foods
Therefore, instead of focusing on the foods that are "misunderstood", it is better to understand what foods are really carcinogenic. for example;
1. Moldy food
Moldy food contains a terrifying powerful carcinogen: aflatoxin. Aflatoxins like to hide in soil, animals and plants, and various nuts, and are commonly found in moldy peanuts, corn, soybeans, etc.
Aflatoxins are classified as class 1 carcinogens, which have carcinogenic, teratogenic and mutagenic effects on the human body, and are related to cancers such as liver cancer, kidney cancer, breast cancer, and rectal cancer.
2. Betel nut
Betel nut is also a class 1 carcinogen. Frequent chewing of betel nut will not only make people ugly, but also increase the risk of oral diseases such as periodontal disease, oral leukoplakia, and oral cancer.
3. Wine
Data for 2020 show that 740,000 new cancers worldwide are associated with alcohol consumption, and even moderate alcohol consumption can lead to more than 100,000 new cancer cases a year.
As a class 1 carcinogen, the harm of alcohol to the human body is self-evident. It not only damages DNA, but also increases the risk of breast cancer, ovarian cancer, uterine cancer and other cancers.
Moreover, there is no safe intake of alcohol, and there is no such thing as a "sweet drink". A study published in The Lancet in 2018 showed that any amount of drinking is harmful to human health!
People take food as their heaven. When it comes to food, we should be more attentive, but we should not hear hearsay. We must have our own judgment and believe in science. Of course, the most important thing is to develop a healthy diet in order to stay away from carcinogenic factors and reduce the risk of cancer.
References
[1] "What are the "little black spots" on Chinese cabbage? Can you eat? Years of doubts solved...". Popular Science China. 2019-11-07
[2] "Rootless bean sprouts are highly toxic and cause cancer? It will not endanger your health, no need to worry" The whole people are true-Tencent News. 2017-04-14
[3] "Moderate drinking is good for health? Is it okay to have two drinks a day? These truths can't be hidden...". Popular Science China. 2021-07-19
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