Cancer is a very terrible disease, and there is currently no complete cure for most cancers. So everyone is very afraid of cancer, and cancer prevention is also a commonplace topic.
Many carcinogens are actually not far away from us and exist around us. Recently, there is a saying circulating on the Internet that many people no longer eat oyster sauce because oyster sauce can cause cancer. is it really like this?
Today we will take you to find out whether oyster sauce causes cancer? What are the carcinogens in oyster sauce?
Does oyster sauce really cause cancer?
Uncle Wang is sixty years old this year. After retirement, he is responsible for cooking for his wife and children every day, and has developed good cooking skills. On this day, while Uncle Wang was cooking, his wife suddenly broke into the kitchen and asked anxiously if Uncle Wang had put oyster sauce in the cooking.
Uncle Wang nodded and showed his wife the oyster sauce bottle on hand. When Uncle Wang's wife saw the oyster sauce, she reached out to pick it up and throw it into the trash can. Uncle Wang looked stunned. It turned out that Uncle Wang's wife had just seen an article on the Internet, saying that oyster sauce might cause cancer, and suggested that everyone should stop eating oyster sauce.
Uncle Wang was very surprised when he heard this. Could this condiment that many people eat every day really cause cancer? The answer is obviously no. Oyster sauce itself is not a carcinogen. Even long-term consumption of oyster sauce will not have a significant impact on the human body as long as the amount is appropriate.
Oyster sauce is called oyster sauce precisely because of the oysters in its raw materials. 's original oyster sauce was made from oysters. This seasoning concentrates the essence of oysters. When added to food, it will give the food a fresh seafood flavor.
However, the traditional oyster sauce manufacturing method is too troublesome and very inefficient. In recent years, with the development of the food industry, the production of oyster sauce has been gradually industrialized and streamlined. Moreover, many merchants will add an appropriate amount of soy sauce in the process of making oyster sauce to obtain an oyster sauce with a smoother taste and richer texture.
Therefore, the raw materials for the production of oyster sauce do not contain any carcinogens. The production process of oyster sauce will not lead to the production of carcinogens. In addition, most of the oyster sauce currently sold on the market is produced industrially, and the production process is strictly supervised by relevant national departments. If it does not meet the standards, it will not be approved for sale at all. It can be seen that oyster sauce is not a carcinogen.
So why is there a saying that oyster sauce causes cancer? The term actually comes from a type of mold that may be present in oyster sauce - and Aspergillus flavus . The fungus called Aspergillus flavus secretes a substance called aflatoxin, which is a real carcinogen.
Aspergillus flavus widely exists in the environment in which we live. Condiments such as oyster sauce may provide an environment for the growth and reproduction of aflatoxin . Aspergillus flavus reproduces in large numbers, causing the accumulation of the carcinogen aflatoxin. If you use oyster sauce at this time, there may be a risk of cancer.
When people use oyster sauce, they often overlook an important issue, which is how to store oyster sauce. After use, oyster sauce should not be stored at room temperature, but should be stored in the refrigerator.
Oyster sauce stored at room temperature may breed Aspergillus aflatoxin, which may secrete a certain amount of aflatoxin. Aflatoxin not only directly kills liver epidermal cells, causing poisoning patients to develop liver damage, jaundice, and other symptoms, it can also affect the replication of DNA in human cells, greatly increasing the possibility of cells becoming cancerous .
As early as 1983, WHO identified aflatoxin as a first-level carcinogen.Therefore, although oyster sauce itself does not cause cancer, if the oyster sauce cannot be properly stored, Aspergillus aflatoxin will breed in the oyster sauce, which may cause great harm to human health.
Therefore, it is not oyster sauce that may actually cause cancer. What needs everyone to take strict precautions is actually Aspergillus aflatoxin.
How to prevent aflatoxin poisoning in life?
Although aflatoxin was recognized as a first-level carcinogen by the World Health Organization as early as 1983, and aflatoxin poisoning incidents still occur frequently today, most people still face aflatoxin in their lives. Threat of toxin poisoning.
One of the very important reasons for this is that the distribution of Aspergillus aflatoxin is too wide, so the prevention of aflatoxin poisoning needs to start from every detail of life. In daily life, you can prevent aflatoxin poisoning through the following methods.
First of all, we must pay attention to the storage time of food. Since Aspergillus aflatoxin is widely distributed in our living environment, many foods have the possibility of being contaminated by Aspergillus aflatoxin. Many friends have an unscientific idea, that is, as long as there are no yellow plaques on the food, it means that Aspergillus aflatoxin has not contaminated the food. This idea is very dangerous.
In fact, Aspergillus aflatoxin does not necessarily only grow on the surface of food, it may also exist inside the food. Some foods may look very clean and complete on the surface, but there may be a large amount of aflatoxin inside. Moreover, it is very difficult to distinguish Aspergillus flavus with the naked eye.
The most effective way to prevent the growth of Aspergillus aflatoxin in food is to eat unopened or processed food quickly. Therefore, everyone must pay attention to the storage time of various foods in life.
Secondly, pay attention to the source of food. In December 2017, my country’s Ministry of Commerce issued a notice advising consumers not to buy self-pressed oil in rural areas. Because the production environment of rural self-pressed oil may be contaminated by Aspergillus aflatoxin, and due to the lack of supervision, many raw materials used in rural self-pressed oil are also at risk of being contaminated by Aspergillus aflatoxin, which will pose a huge threat to human health.
If you want to completely avoid aflatoxin, whether it is cooking oil or other foods, you must pay attention to the source of the food when choosing. should purchase food produced by qualified manufacturers that meets food safety standards from regular merchants.
Another important way to prevent aflatoxin poisoning is to pay attention to the way food is stored. We have introduced to you above that storing oyster sauce in a suitable environment can effectively avoid the growth of Aspergillus aflatoxin.
In fact, in addition to oyster sauce, many foods should pay attention to the storage environment. Although Aspergillus flavus is very tenacious, it needs a suitable environment to reproduce in large numbers. Humid and warm environments are very friendly to the proliferation of Aspergillus flavus. Therefore, when preserving food, everyone should try to keep the food in a low-temperature and ventilated environment.
Aflatoxin is a class I carcinogen. Preventing the consumption of food contaminated with aflatoxin can effectively avoid exposure to aflatoxin. But in daily life, the carcinogens that everyone may be exposed to are far more than just aflatoxin.
Extended knowledge: These carcinogens may exist around us
Many types of carcinogens are actually not far away from our lives, and they may exist in our lives. In order to protect your health and avoid the occurrence of cancer, everyone must pay attention to these carcinogens in your life.
Tobacco is one of our most common carcinogens. A long time ago, the World Health Organization identified cigarettes as a type of carcinogen. But because many people are dependent on smoking cigarettes, they still smoke a lot of cigarettes even though they know that cigarettes may cause cancer.
Cigarettes produce thousands of compounds during the combustion process, most of which are very harmful to human health. styrene , formaldehyde , these products of cigarette combustion are all very typical carcinogens. Many studies at home and abroad have shown that people who like to smoke are much more likely to develop lung cancer than ordinary people.
Smoking not only causes harm to the smoker's own health, but also pollutes the surrounding environment and causes serious damage to the health of those around him. Therefore, everyone should try to quit the habit of smoking. This is not only responsible for their own health, but also to protect the health of others.
Decorating a house is something that most people have to go through. However, some decoration materials used when decorating a house may release a large amount of carcinogens. except formaldehyde. Some substandard marble may contain radiation, which is also a carcinogen.
Although my country has strict requirements on the environmental protection of decoration materials, there are still many unscrupulous businesses selling some decoration materials that are harmful to human health to consumers.
These decoration materials that do not meet safety standards may release organic compounds such as aromatic hydrocarbons, which are very common carcinogens. If you move into a new house before these organic matter are gone, it may increase the probability of cancer in the residents.
Therefore, when purchasing decoration materials, be sure to purchase decoration materials that comply with national safety standards. In addition, if a house that has been decorated too much can be left alone for a period of time, and it is confirmed that there are no harmful substances in the house before moving in, it can effectively prevent residents from being exposed to carcinogens.
Conclusion
Oyster sauce is a very common condiment in our lives, it can make food more delicious. As long as the oyster sauce is produced by a regular manufacturer and the consumption of oyster sauce is strictly controlled, it will not cause great harm to human health, let alone cause cancer.
However, if oyster sauce is stored improperly, it may lead to the growth of Aspergillus aflatoxin, and its secretion, aflatoxin, is a very common carcinogen. Therefore, whether it is oyster sauce or other foods, you must pay attention to how they are stored and how long they are stored, so that these common foods will not become carcinogens.
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