What should you pay attention to in your diet to prevent liver cancer? If you eat too much of this, you may get liver cancer

The traditional saying that "a man cannot live without ginger" has been overturned by scientific research results. Professor Liu Liegang, director of the Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene at Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, said that ginger, star anise, cinnamon, fennel, prickly ash, pepper, mint, nutmeg and other spicy spices contain more or less safrole, which can cause liver cancer. For the sake of health, everyone should eat as light a diet as possible and use less spices.

Eating too much ginger may increase liver cancer risk

There are many folk proverbs similar to the traditional view that "a man cannot live without ginger for a day, and a woman cannot live without sugar for a hundred days", such as "keep ginger at home, and you won't panic when you have a minor illness", "eat ginger often in summer, and you will live longer and stay healthy", "eat radish in winter and ginger in summer, and you won't need a doctor to prescribe medicine", "eat ginger in all seasons, and all diseases will be gone", and "eat three slices of ginger in the morning, it's better than ginseng soup". These proverbs all affirm the health benefits of ginger. It should be affirmed that natural spices do have the functions of promoting blood circulation, dispelling cold, removing dampness, and sweating, especially ginger has the functions of promoting bile, strengthening the stomach, stopping vomiting, eliminating fishy smell, and eliminating edema. However, ginger also contains an ingredient that is not good for health - safrole.

Safrole, a component of ginger, may cause liver cancer

Research by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) shows that safrole can cause liver cancer. Adding 0.04% to 1% safrole to the feed of mice for 150 days to 2 years can induce liver cancer in mice. The process by which safrole is metabolized into active carcinogens is now relatively clear: safrole is first metabolized into phenylethanol in the mouse body, and then activated and converted into acetate or sulfate, becoming the final carcinogen. If safrole combines with oxidants, it will produce epoxy safrole with stronger carcinogenic activity.

Safrole is not allowed as a food additive in the United States

Safrole is no longer allowed as a food additive in the United States. Recently, the European Union Expert Committee decided to further reduce the permitted dosage of safrole within the EU to reduce its harm to the human body. The Codex Alimentarius Committee on Food Additives is currently initiating the formulation of the "Guidelines for the Use of Flavors", which stipulates that the maximum limit of safrole in food and beverages is 1 mg/kg.

Rotten ginger has a higher content of safrole

In light of this, we should reflect on Chinese ginger and other condiments, and we should use less or limit their use. It is recommended to change some traditional food preparation habits. At least, do not add ginger and other condiments to dishes every day; try to eat less stewed dishes. Because in the preparation of stewed dishes, spices such as star anise, cinnamon, fennel, and pepper are the "main" condiments. Natural spices such as ginger contain more or less safrole. Just like "potatoes with sprouts cannot be eaten", rotten ginger cannot be used. Rotten ginger has a higher safrole content.

Eating too much ginger can cause stomach problems

Liu Liegang said that in addition to containing safrole, which can cause liver cancer, excessive consumption of spices such as ginger can easily lead to excessive gastric acid secretion and stomach bloating, causing headaches, nausea, vomiting, difficulty breathing, and even affecting liver and kidney function, posing a great threat to human health.

We have always advocated a light diet and keeping the original flavor of food, which not only means using less salt and oil when cooking, but also using less ginger and other condiments. Eating more fruits and vegetables can effectively inhibit the combination of safrole and oxidants and reduce its carcinogenic effect. Therefore, after eating ginger and other condiments, it is best to eat more fruits and vegetables to reduce the harm of safrole.