“WHO warns rice cookers cause cancer” while surfing the Internet, and her heart skipped a beat. Looking through the rice cooker in my father’s car, I found that the inner tank was severely scratched. Is this rice cooker that accompanies my father through all directions really an invisible killer of health?
1. If this happens to the rice cooker, don’t use it!
Rice cookers are a very commonly used appliance in our lives, but in recent years there have been many rumors about rice cookers on the Internet, and some people even say that the rice cookers have cancer “catalyst” in them. What is going on?
Currently, the most common rice cooker liner on the market is made of aluminum, but because aluminum precipitates easily when heated and when it encounters acidic substances, a layer of perfluorinated polymers such as polytetrafluoroethylene is applied to the rice cooker liner, that is Teflon , protects the aluminum liner. Teflon has the characteristics of stable properties, strong acid and alkali resistance, and non-toxicity.
In order to explore whether the coating of the inner tank of a rice cooker is easily decomposed, CCTV conducted a special experiment and found that Teflon only decomposes when heated to 300℃, and the products decomposed at higher temperatures are more toxic . However, the temperature of our daily cooking using the rice cooker will not exceed 200℃, and it will not reach the decomposition temperature of Teflon at all, so there is no need to worry.
There is no way to investigate the carcinogenesis of the inner tank circulating on the Internet. There is no relevant information when entering keywords on the official website of the World Health Organization. There is no so-called call to stop using rice cookers and that the inner tank of rice cookers is a catalyst for liver cancer.
But there is one situation to be aware of, namely Replace the inner tank coating in time after it falls off . After the coating comes off, it will cause the inner tank to stick to the pan, and it is easy to paste the bottom and dry the pan when cooking, affecting the taste of food. Moreover, “food will come into direct contact with the aluminum liner after the coating falls off. Long-term exposure to aluminum is extremely detrimental to health and can easily cause chronic toxic and side effects on the body”.
2. Use the rice cooker safely, 4 things to keep in mind
Zhang Zhaoming, deputy chief engineer of the Household Appliance Testing Center of China Household Appliances Research Institute Said, “When purchasing a rice cooker, the most important thing is the inner tank. The most common combination is the aluminum inner tank + coating. Pay attention to these details when using it!”.
I. Jet ports are cleaned in time
Rice soup often overflows from the air jet of the rice cooker. If this location is not cleaned in time, it is easy to produce harmful substances such as salmonella and E. coli. The next time you cook, these bacteria will flow back into the pot to contaminate the food. It is recommended that when cleaning the rice cooker, the steam hole caps should be disassembled together, washed and then installed.
II. Avoid cooking acidic ingredients
Rice cookers should avoid cooking acidic foods, because acidic foods can easily invade into the voids of the inner tank to corrode the matrix material and accelerate the rate of coating peeling off.
III. Pay attention to the number of years of safety
Generally, the safe life of rice cooker is 3~5 years, too long use can easily make the inner tank coating fall off, which is bad for health.
IV. Do not wash the pan with a wire ball
The friction of the wire ball is very strong, and it is easy to make the coating of the inner tank fall off when cleaning, so avoid using it. Wash the rice cooker coating daily, it is recommended to use non-sharp cleaning tools such as rags.
3. 5 commonly cooking habits could be more unhealthy than takeout!
Traditionally cooked home meals are healthier than taking away, but if you cook with bad habits, the meals will be more unhealthy than takeout! In the case you have these habits, it is highly impossible that you will not get rid of them.
I. Oil searing should happen before serving
Most of the oil we consume nowadays are purified vegetable oils. When the oil pan smokes, the temperature has generally exceeded 200℃. At this time, the food is losing its vitamins, proteins, and other nutrients due to high temperature, and at the same time, it can cause cancer such as heterocyclic amines, benzopyrene, etc., which are harmful to human health.
II. After each fried dish, do not clean the pan with a brush and continue frying.
Most probably, many people use this mentality as a way to save their time and energy, but in fact, it is the opposite when it comes to health. After the previous frying, a lot of grease and food particulate matter stick to the pot, which will be easily burnt and release carcinogens when you heat it again.
III. The same cutting board is used for both raw and cooked food.
When you cut vegetables, the bacteria and parasites that are present in the raw food, will end up on the cutting board and this will easily contaminate the cooked food when you cut the cooked one. If the contaminated cooked food is eaten directly, it is likely to cause food poisoning, vomiting and diarrhea in mild cases, and enteritis/bacillary dysentery in severe cases are observed.
IV. Washing raw meat with running water
The bacteria and viruses that cause infections in the body can be found on the surface of raw meat. If it is washed with running water, bacteria will be released due to the splashes made by the water onto sinks, chopping boards, and tableware. It is recommended that you soak in saltwater for daily cleaning for 10-15 minutes and then wash it with a little running water
V. Stop the range hood immediately after cooking
The oil fumes are still there after cooking. If you turn off the oil fume pump immediately, your body will get a great amount of oil fumes. The right thing to do is to turn on the range hood for a few more minutes after cooking, so that some of the remaining harmful air is adsorbed away in time.
While picking a rice cooker on a day to day basis, the main thing that you ought to concentrate on is choosing a brand with a remarkable reputation. Just a little bit of care in the usage will guarantee the product to function properly and not to pose any health hazard to the customer or cause cancer. There is no need to worry too much about this.
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