What are the health risks associated with acrylamide and why is it still used in food?”
According to the World Health Organization, acrylamide is a chemical that is used to make polyacrylamide materials – materials used in the treatment of drinking-water and waste water to remove particles and other impurities. It is also used to make glues, paper and cosmetics. Acrylamide is not a traditional food additive, per se. There is currently little information about, and poor understanding of, how acrylamide is formed in foods. It appears to be produced naturally in some foods that have been cooked or processed at high temperature and the levels appear to increase with the duration of heating. In terms of the health risks of acrylamide, it is known to cause cancer in animals. Also, certain doses of acrylamide are toxic to the nervous system of both animals and humans.
