Where possible, avoid foods with added synthetic chemicals, pesticides, herbicides, preservatives, or artificial sweeteners, flavors and colors. Ultra-processed foods often contain artificial ingredients and excess or added sugar, fats or salt and, at the same time, have limited nutritional value, as previously noted. Here Winnie Martin, Food.news, reflects on alternatives to toxic plastics in your kitchen:

“If you are using plastic cooking utensils in your kitchen, it may be time to throw them away altogether. Scientists have warned that many plastic cooking spoons, whisks and spatulas contain harmful substances. These harmful substances called oligomers can get into your food when exposed to temperatures more than 70 degrees Celsius (158 degrees Fahrenheit.)

Oligomers are used in making plastic utensils to make them grease-proof and able to withstand boiling temperatures without melting. But excessive amounts of oligomers in the body can cause a plethora of ailments such as liver and thyroid disease. These synthetic compounds have also been linked to high cholesterol, infertility and cancer.

There is insufficient data regarding the negative effects of oligomers in humans as of writing. But in vitro studies using mice have revealed that these chemicals play a role in the development of tumors in the liver, pancreas and testicles. Furthermore, oligomers were also found to negatively impact mice fertility.

The German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (Bfr) issued the warning against plastic utensils in a September 2019 report. Scientists from the food safety watchdog explained that plastic cooking utensils give off oligomers when heated. These oligomers can leach into food when the utensils are in direct contact, they added. Bfr’s warning bolstered earlier evidence that plastics used in food contain toxic chemicals that people eventually ingest.

Bfr experts looked at 33 items and found that 10 plastic cooking utensils could easily leach more than the daily limit of oligomers when used to cook multiple meals. Thus, the German watchdog advised against using plastic cooking utensils on meals with a temperature of 70 degrees Celsius or more. It also advised the government to mandate plastic manufacturers to compile data on the amount of oligomers their products give off when exposed to heat.

Now that the dangers of plastic utensils in the kitchen have been exposed, the next question is: “What do we replace these harmful kitchen wares with?” Here are four alternatives to plastic wares you can adopt in your kitchen.”

Read More … Article Source: https://www.food.news/2021-03-26-4-alternatives-toxic-plastics-in-your-kitchen.html

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