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More and more supermarkets are selling vegetables that can be eaten within minutes by simply heating them in the microwave in the same plastic bag they were purchased in. Potatoes, cabbage or a mixture of various vegetables come already cooked and, according to the producer’s instructions, do not need to be placed in a separate container for heating in the microwave. But new research suggests it’s probably better to remove the vegetables from the bag before cooking them.
Researchers at the University of Almería (Spain), led by Dr. Francisco José Díaz Gagliano, found that this microwave cooking process actually resulted in a “very significant” transfer of plastic content from the bag to the vegetables.Research – Published in a magazine food chemistry — We also determined that the action of microwaves in these cases creates a new compound in potatoes called HMPP maltose. Díaz-Galiano said this is a “potentially toxic” compound, but new research is still needed to confirm this. In any case, the transition of plastic to potatoes remains a problem.
The researchers felt that “in very high-energy situations such as microwave ovens, there is a good chance that certain plastic components could migrate into food.” They started testing all kinds of things, offering different brands of potatoes in bags ready to be cooked or heated. I made it in every possible variation. “Microwave it in a plastic bag or microwave it in a glass container…in either case, either leave it in the bag for the recommended time or cook it over water.” What I gave was [the potatoes] It takes about 10 to 15 minutes,” Diaz Gagliano explains. He remembers that potatoes were also analyzed before cooking. They repeated the experiment 27 times, and “the same differences appeared every time.”
This experiment yielded two results. “One result was intuitive and the other was completely unexpected,” said the lead researcher. What came as no surprise to them was the transition of polymers from plastics to food. “It has been demonstrated that there is a very significant migration of polypropylene glycol (PPG) polymers from plastic bags to potatoes… [and] Only when cooking in the microwave in contact with plastic. This means that even if these PPGs are present in the bag, they will not be transferred to the food unless you cook it with it, such as when cooking in a microwave,” Diaz-Gagliano points out. This transition does not exclude the possibility that “other compounds are present in the plastic,” he added.
“There are other possibilities as well. [compounds] “It only moves into food through contact,” he admits. “But in this case, we focused on differences during the cooking process that come into contact with the food.” For the researchers, this conclusion is irrefutable, because “raw potatoes and boiled This is because there are compounds that are only found in potatoes that are only produced by the cooking process of potatoes that come in contact with plastic water, or microwaved in a glass. ”
In addition to this more or less expected outcome, this experience has had some unexpected consequences, but there is still a long way to go before their significance can be determined. It’s about the emergence of new compounds. Díaz-Galiano said that plastics contain “synthetic photoinitiators, [which are] Reactive compounds are eager to find things to interact with and bond with to create new plastic molecules, new polymers that result from the creation of ever-proliferating structures. Microwave energy applied to the bag triggers a process whose end result is a combination of HMPP, one of the synthetic photoinitiators used in the synthesis of plastics, and maltose (a natural ingredient made from starch from the bag). “It appears to be,” he added. Potato. “This structure (which the researchers tentatively named HMPP maltose) “has not been previously described,” the study says. [level of] Toxicity or safety? ”
Either way, the signs are not good for your health. The professor of analytical chemistry asserts, “HMPP (2-hydroxy-2 methylpropiophenone), on the other hand, is itself toxic.” On the other hand, studies using software models have shown that the combination of HMPP and maltose is potentially toxic to living organisms. ” Currently, the research team is investigating possible synthetic routes to produce the compound. “Then we can assess its properties,” he concludes.
The toxicity (or lack of toxicity) of plastics for food use has been regulated by the European Union since 2011, in particular in its regulations regarding plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with food. Material compatibility is determined by tests that analyze the interaction of so-called “food mimetics” with food. The tests use products that mimic plastic packaging. There are six simulants, five of which are liquids (acetic acid, vegetable oil, and three dilutions of ethanol and water) and one is a solid called Tenax TA, which is used, for example, in the analysis of sachets of powdered soup. Interactions between foods and these similar substances determine their safety based on whether they migrate into the food.
Díaz Gagliano believes that the aforementioned method is not completely reliable today, as it narrows down all food possibilities to only six groups. He also points out that the team was unable to obtain conclusive results because experiments on potatoes (also using similar substances) did not show that these compounds migrated into vegetables. .
“Testing revealed that there was no transfer of food analogues from mere contact with the plastic, either before or after cooking,” he said, adding that this was not the case when the potatoes were cooked in the bag. This is inconsistent with what is happening.
“The migration of plastic polymer components and their additives into food is a well-known and studied problem,” commented Nicholas Olea, analyzing recent studies. He is a doctor and professor at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Almeria. The health and environment expert said the transfer “raises continuing questions about plastic materials used in food and the kitchen”. [due to safety concerns]. Given the large amount of chemical compounds that migrate from plastics to food, there is an urgent need to analyze new materials. ”
“Unfortunately, as the researchers of this pioneering study demonstrate, protocols to investigate this transition fail on two fronts. On the one hand, the possible combinations of cooking methods and food types However, what is most impressive about this study is that it has not yet been evaluated what new compounds appear in food when plastics are used in food production. That’s something I’ve never done before.”
For Dr. Olea, this conclusion was compelling. “Not only is tighter control over proposed innovations necessary, a challenge that far exceeds the capabilities of current food safety and management systems, but it is also a challenge for producers and sellers. It is also an obligation: warn the public about the risks of changing normal cooking methods [foodstuffs].It is not ethical to wait for the European Food Safety Authority’s announcement. [or the FDA] Give your opinion on this issue. The public should be informed that cooking potatoes in the microwave using ready-to-cook plastic containers risks exposing them to toxic contaminants that they would never encounter when boiling them in a regular pot. It’s very simple,” shrugs the researcher. He recently wrote a book — Free yourself from toxins — which emphasizes his message.
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