Cancer in a Can: The Shocking True Story of

how Pringles are Made

November 25, 2014

If you want to understand the nature of Pringles and other stackable chips, you
can forget idea that they are made from actual potatoes in any recognizable way.
The Pringles Company (in an effort to avoid taxes levied against luxury foods like
chips in the UK) once even stated that the content of potatoes in their chips was
so small that they are technically not even a potato chips.

So what are they exactly made of?

The process starts with a slurry of rice, potato flakes, wheat and corn which are
pressed into shape.
This dough-like substance is then rolled out into an ultra-thin sheet cut into thin
chip-cookies by a machine.
According to io9:

The chips move forward on a conveyor belt where theyre pressed onto
molds, that gives them the curve that helps them fit into one another.
Those molds move through boiling oil Then are blown dried, sprayed with the
powdered flavors, and at last, placed onto a slower-moving conveyor belt specially
made allowing them to stack. After that, they go into the cans and off to the
innocent mouths of the consumers.
I think that mostly everyone reading this, enjoys the taste of potato chips.
However, one thing is clear, they are one of the most toxic processed foods you
can eat it doesnt matter if they are made from actual potato shavings or not.
Potato Chips are Loaded with Cancer-Causing Chemicals.
One of the most hazardous ingredients in potato chips are not intentionally
added, but rather are a byproduct of the processing.
A cancer-causing and potentially neurotoxic chemical, Acrylamide, is created when
carbohydrate-rich foods are cooked at high temperatures, whether fried, baked,
toasted or roasted. Some of the worst offenders include French fries and potato
chips, but many foods cooked or processed at temperatures above 212F (100C)
are likely to contain acrylamide. The main rule is: the chemical is formed when the
food is heated enough to produce a fairly dry and yellow/brown surface.
Hereby, it can be found in:
Potatoes: French fries, chips and other fried or roasted potato foods
Grains: toast,bread crust, roasted breakfast cereals, crisp bread and various
processed snacks.
Coffee: ground coffee powder and roasted coffee beans. Surprisingly, substitutes
for coffee based on chicory actually contain 2-3 times MORE acrylamide than real
coffee.

How Much Acrylamide are You Consuming?

The federal limit for acrylamide in drinking water is 0.12 micrograms in an eightounce glass of water, or about 0.5 parts per billion. However, a six-ounce serving
of French fries can contain 60 micrograms of acrylamide, or nearly FIVE

HUNDRED times over the federal limit.

The potato chips have a notoriously high amountof this dangerous chemical. So
high, in fact, that in 2005 the state of California sued the potato chips makers for
failing to warn the consumers from California about the health risks of acrylamide
found in their products. Anagreement was reached in 2008 when Frito-Lay and
few other potato chip makers agreed to reduce the acrylamide levels in their chips
to 275 parts per billion (ppb) by 2011, which is the amount low enough to avoid
the cancer warning label.
The 2005 report How Potato Chips Stack Up: Levels of Cancer-Causing Acrylamide
in Popular Brands of Potato Chips, issued by the California-based environmental
Law Foundation (ELF), warned about the dangers of this popular snack. Their
analysis discovered that all potato chip products tested were over the legal limit of
acrylamide by a minimum of 39 times, and a maximum of 910 times! Some of
the worst offenders at that time included:
Kettle Chips (honey dijon): 495 times

Kettle Chips (lightly salted): 505 times

Cape Cod Robust Russet: 910 times the legal limit of acrylamide

Caution: Baked Chips May Be Even WorseThan Fried!

If you think that you can evade the health risks of the potato chips by choosing its
baked varieties, which are always advertised as being healthier,well think
again.One thing you have to remember is that acrylamide is formed not only
when foods are boiled or fried, but also when they are baked. And according to
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) data on amounts of acrylamide in foods,
baked chips may contain more than three timesthe amount of acrylamide from
regular chips!
Interestingly, the same thing goes for other foods, too, which suggests that baking
the potatoes at high temperatures may be one of the worst ways to process
them. For example, according to the FDAs data, Ore Ida Golden Fries contained
107 ppb of acrylamide in the regular fried version and 1,098 in the baked one. So
remember this, ALL potato chips contain acrylamide, regardless of whether they
arefried or baked; natural or not. Likewise, they will ALL affect your insulin levels
in a very negative way.

Acrylamide is Not the Only Danger

When foods are heated to high temperatures, Acrylamide is not the only
dangerous genotoxic compound that is formed.
A three-year long EU project, known as Heat-Generated Food Toxicants
(HEATOX), whose findings were published at the end of 2007, found that there
are more than 800 heat-induced compounds, of which 52 are potential
carcinogens. In addition to their discoveriesis that acrylamide does pose a public
health threat, the HEATOX scientists also discovered that youre far less likely to
ingest dangerous levels of the toxin when you eat homecooked foods compared
to the restaurant or industrially-prepared foods.
Additionally, the HEATOX findings also suggest that although there are ways to
decrease exposure to acrylamide, it can never be eliminated completely.
They have calculated that, with a successful application of all known methods until
todayit would reduce the acrylamide intake by 40 percent at the mostwhich
makes us wonder whether chips manufacturers have been successful in reducing
acrylamide levels to within federal limits Theres no updated data yet, so theres
no proofthat theyve been able to comply with the 2005 agreement.
For more detailed information about acrylamide, we recommend reading the
online report Heat- Generated Food Toxicants, Identification,
Characterization and Risk Minimization. However, in general, just remember
that cooking food at high temperatures is not advised. A few of the most wellknown toxins created in high-temperature cooking include:
Advanced Glycation End Products (AGEs): When the food is cooked at high
temperatures (including when it is sterilized or pasteurized), the formation of
AGEs in your food increases. When you consume the food, it transfers the AGEs
into your body. AGEs build up in your body over time leading to inflammation,
oxidative stress, and an increased risk of heart disease, kidney disease and
diabetes.
Heterocyclic Amines (HCAs): These HCAs are formed when the meat is cooked at
high temperatures, and theyre also linked to cancer. In terms of HCA, the worst
part of the meat is the section where the meat has blackened, which is why you

should always avoid charring your meat, and never eat the blackened sections.
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs): When fat drips onto the heat source,
causing excess smoke, and the smoke surrounds your food, it can transfer cancercausing PAHs to be created in the meat.

The Search for a Healthy Chips Continues

The search for a Healthy chips is like a modern-day search for the Holy Grail, but
chip manufacturers keep searching for methods to improve the image of their
health-harming but very profitable snacks. For example, by the end of 2011, about
half of Pepsis Frito-Lay brand snacks were reformulated with all-natural
ingredients. The change is part of PepsiCos master plan to step into the healthy
foods market share. The Wall Street Journal recently revealed that the company
hopes to boost their nutrition business profits from $10 billion to $30 billion by
2020.
The dietary hazards like monosodium glutamate (MSG) are going to be removed
by the company and should be replaced with natural seasonings, such as paprika
and molasses. The beet juice, the purple cabbage and the carrots are going to
replace the artificial colors. All in all, about 60different snacks are scheduled to get
an all-natural makeover.
This is very good example of how consumer demand can change the direction of
food manufacturers in a positive way.
The reformulated chips might end up being less bad for you than the original
formulations. However, chips is never going to be truly healthful. All-natural chips
may be the lesser of two evils, but if consumed regularly, they will still push your
health in the wrong direction Theres no escaping from the fact that modern
plagues such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity have a dietary
component, and potato chips and French fries will always be theworst choice if
you want to avoid becoming another disease statistic.

How to Avoid Heat-Induced Toxins in Your Diet

Ideally, you should consume foods that are minimally processed or raw if you
want to avoid these types of toxic byproductsthe more raw food, the better. Our
nutrition plan obligates you that at least one-third of your foods must be

consumed raw. Personally, i consume about 80 percent of the food raw, and I
think that this is one of the most important factors that keeps me healthy.
It may take you some time to switch over to a less processed diet, but it would be
a great start if you throw out the most obvious culprits.
These would include: potato chips and French fries, all kinds of sodas (both
regular and diet, as artificial sweeteners may be more problematic than fructose),
Doughnuts.

Healthy Eating Just Became Easy

Cooking and processing aside from creating potentially toxic byproducts, also
depletes the food of valuable micronutrients, which is another reason for you to
consume as much raw food as possible. This includes protein sources such as
eggs. Raw whole eggs from organic, pastured chickens are a great source of highquality nutrients that many are deficient in. Another good example of a food that
is beneficial in its raw state israw milk, but it becomes harmful after it is
pasteurized.
With the search for foods that will benefit your health, such as raw, preferably
organic or/andlocally-grown vegetables, organic grass-fed meats, raw dairy,
healthy oils, seeds and nuts, you can improve your health greatly. These are the
foods that are truly natural, and quite easy to prepare once you get the hang of it.
For a step-by-step guide in order to make the transition to a healthier diet as
smooth and simple as possible, simply follow the advice in ourimproved nutrition
plan.
Remember, the secret in getting healthier, losing weight and really enjoying your
food is eating fresh whole foods. Its sad that so many people are under the wrong
belief that its almost impossible to create a meal without processed foods. Mark
Scarbrough and Bruce Weinstein are fighting with this issue head-on in their book
Real Food Has Curves, which is a great starting point to if you want to relearn the
basics of how to enjoy and prepare real food.
Once you get used to it, youll find you can prepare yourself a healthy meal from
scratch in the same amount of time it would have taken you to go down the street
andbuy fast food. The main difference is going to be biggerer satisfaction, both

mentally and physically, and even financially, as processed foods are typically
more expensive than cooking yourself a healthy meal from scratch.
Posted by Thavam