Effects and hazards of edible alkali

We are all familiar with edible alkali. Mothers always add edible alkali when making steamed buns. This is to integrate the acid produced during the fermentation process of steamed buns so that the steamed buns do not have a sour taste. The chemical component of edible alkali is sodium carbonate. The role of edible alkali is not only in steaming steamed buns, but also has many uses in medicine, especially in the treatment of gastrointestinal diseases. Many people suffer from excessive stomach acid, so they can eat more edible alkaline foods to neutralize stomach acid. Let's learn about the role and hazards of edible alkali.

Edible alkali: Alkali flour (soda, pure alkali): The scientific name is sodium carbonate, and the chemical formula is Na2CO3. Alkali flour is edible alkali. Its English name is dietary alkali. The main ingredient is sodium carbonate, and its texture is rougher than salt.

effect

Adding a little alkali flour when cooking corn porridge can increase its viscosity. Drinking this kind of corn porridge regularly is especially good for people with stomach acid, without having to specifically drink soda water. This is just like eating more vegetables instead of buying vitamin pills. It is a good way to treat disease through food.

With our full understanding of its ingredients and functions, we can come to the conclusion that if we use it fully, reasonably and in appropriate amounts, its value will be positive; if we use it in violation of regulations, such as increasing the spiciness of hot pot or cleaning animal offal, the consequences will be very harmful. The example of adding alkali to hot pot illustrates its harmfulness. The alkali added to the hot pot, when passed through high temperature, enters the digestive system along with the food, and will continuously neutralize the stomach acid to generate carbon dioxide. Symptoms may occur, such as constant burping and expansion reaction of the digestive tract. If this type of substance is consumed for a long time, it will damage the human digestive system, causing the digestive system to become less functional and even cause pathological reactions.

Nutritional analysis

1. Microorganisms will generate acid during the dough fermentation process. The dough will become sour after fermentation. Alkali (carbonate) must be added to react with the acid to make delicious pasta.

2. Alkali can neutralize the organic acids or sulfides that adhere to dark green vegetables due to excessive spraying of pesticides, thereby preserving the original color of the vegetables and removing the pollution of pesticides on the vegetables;

3. Alkali has a strong degreasing effect and can remove excess oil from oily dry food ingredients;

4. Alkali can release the niacin in corn which is not easy to release, so that people who eat corn for a long time will not suffer from pellagra due to the lack of niacin in corn;

5. The disadvantage of alkali is that it has a strong destructive effect on vitamin B1, B2 and vitamin C in food, and it also affects the body's absorption and utilization of certain minerals. Therefore, it should not be abused.