Those who fancy cuisine prepared using high-heat may be subject to an increased risk in getting heart disease, a new study suggests.
While there are some type of oils believed to be good for our health such as canola oil, it's still common knowledge that fried food, or worse, double fried food and food cooked in fatty oils are detrimental to our health. A new study finds that the temperature with which the food is cooked may also play a major role in fatty and oily foods that are heart disease hazards.
"When food is heated up to a high temperature, new compounds are created, and some of them are known to be harmful to health," research lead Raj Bhopal said. The Nutrition Journal has published a brief once-over of the study, testing "The high-heat food preparation hypothesis." Bhopal said that the creation of new compounds result from the temperature and the cooking process instead of the actual frying of food.
When food is cooked over high heat, the production of neo-formed contaminants, or NFCs, increases, which includes trans-fatty acids and advanced glycation end-products. These are proteins or lipids that undergo glycation once exposed to sugars.
These NFCs then produce biochemical and micro anatomic alterations that increase the traditional risks of coronary heart disease. This phenomenon occurs in preparation of food over high-heat, which is more commonly found in South Asian cuisines.
In fact, it's been found that South Asian countries such as Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Bhutan, Maldives and Sri Lanka have a greater risk of heart disease, four times to be exact.
Bhopal's research has investigated the risk of heart disease among Scotland residents. The highest rate of heart attack was found among the Pakistani population, according to his previous study. Next was the Indian population. The Chinese ranked the lowest.
By comparing the trans-fat content of Chinese and Indian snacks, the latter of which has vast amounts of, Bhopal was able to infer from his research that the difference stems from Chinese food preparation, which involves boiling, light frying and stir-frying.
The study found that through high-heat cooking and frying, even healthy oils can turn unhealthy.
How To Avoid High-Heat Food
If you want to lessen your risk of heart disease, you want to veer away from food cooked over high heat for the meantime. Meat cooked in high heat has also been found to increase cancer risks, so you may want to reconsider the way you cook and prepare meals containing meat.
It's also helpful to avoid snacks that were cooked using high-temperature oils. Bhopal recommends olive oil to be an alternative since according to him, olive oil does not heat up to a very high temperature.
It's also wise to avoid oily and fried foods altogether. Of course, complete avoidance is unrealistic, and people may occasionally consume foods prepared via the methods listed above. If it can't be avoided, it's always a good idea to keep things in moderation.
Oddly enough, a new study suggests that health anxiety may lead to a higher risks of heart disease. So while it's important to be on the lookout for high-heat food, try to avoid worrying about it too much.
