Wellcure
Wellcure
10:22 AM | 27-05-2020
We choose our food carefully to stay healthy but do we give equal attention to our cookware? Many types of cookware can poison our food and leave residual toxins in our body. Most of these toxins are metallic in nature and dangerous for our health. This article throws light on cookware toxicity, how it affects us and how to avoid it.
How are cookwares making our food toxic?
Our lovely and often carefully chosen pots and pans are a culprit of leaching toxins into our food. A lot of them are made from aluminum, ceramic, have Teflon, PTFE, or other coatings. Studies have shown that these metals are harmful.
While getting heated with our food, they release injurious substances into it which we consume. These substances find their way into our bloodstream and digestive system. Some of these toxins, if ingested in small quantities, get eliminated from our body through stools and urine.
However, frequent cooking into wrong cookware causes repeated exposure to harmful toxins, accumulating them in our bodies. Such residual toxins can cause diseases and long-term exposure to them can be detrimental to our health.
Which Cookwares are harmful & how?
Aluminium
Aluminium has the tendency to get dissolved into food and water during cooking. If the pan is worn out, the metal exudes even more into our food. A study conducted by the Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry, USA says “frequently cooking acidic foods in aluminum pots may expose a person to higher levels of aluminum”. The agency also lists aluminium among 200 toxic items.
Aluminium wrap which is used to pack food, leach the metal into food if it is kept in the wrap for too long and contains acidic foods like lemon or tomato.
Although aluminium is the third most abundant metal on earth and is found in everything from air, water, medicines to antiperspirants, the WHO recommends the upper consumption limit of aluminium as 50 mg for adults. As we are already absorbing aluminium unknowingly from so many natural and unnatural resources, why not limit its further intake by judiciously using cooking utensils?
Health Hazard - Aluminium can cause Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s diseases at an early age, quotes a study in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.
Non-Stick
The next offender on the list is a hot favorite, non-stick cookware, which is often considered ‘healthy’ for cooking as it reduces the consumption of cooking oil. However, what we ignore is the coatings over non-stick pans and the fact that most of them have ‘aluminium’ as base material. Eroded coatings by rough or prolonged use exposes the food to aluminium.
Copper
Tin Lining - Tin is a pure metal and copper cookware when lined with tin become handier. However, tin has a melting point of only 230 degrees Celsius, after which it can assimilate into the food. Tin coatings are usually soft and if worn out due to repeated use or heat can make copper ooze out into foods.
Nickel Lining - This is another poisonous metal and should be avoided in cookware.
Health Hazard - Small amounts of copper are essential for us but excess copper can cause heavy metal poisoning. Tin is not easily absorbed by humans and hence creates residual toxins in the body.
Ceramic-Coated
Ceramic-coated cookware usually has the toxic aluminium base. If the coating erodes, exposure to aluminium happens. In addition to that, the coating itself contains the deadly lead and cadmium. Lead poisoning is a grave threat to anyone’s health. Cadmium is a heavy metal and must be avoided.
Health Hazard - Lead poisoning can lead to abdominal pains, headaches, infertility and in severe cases can even cause coma or death.
It isn’t just the cookware!
Wrong tableware and microwave can also release toxins into your food.
Melamine
Those colorful dishes and bowls look harmless and exciting, especially to kids. However, the US FDA recommends that melamine dishes should not be used to eat hot food, acidic food, and food should not be re-heated in those. This limits the use of melamine as tableware.
Health Hazard - The biggest reason for avoiding melamine is that it is a plastic compound, and can enter into our bodies through food. In high concentrations, it can cause kidney stones or even kidney failure.
Microwave
You will usually find conflicting information on the internet about the effects of microwave ovens on cooking and food. They are believed to strip food off nutritional value and even turn certain food elements carcinogenic.
While microwaving can be a convenient and quick-cooking or re-heating method. But, when there are better and healthier ways to cook and retain nutrition in food, why not avoid microwaving?
What are the alternatives?
Earthenware
It is the most natural and healthy way of cooking. Earthen pots are made of clay which is a composition of essential nutrients, such as, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, etc. These elements get absorbed into food while cooking. This is a characteristic that is unique to clay pots. It makes clay by far the best raw material for making cookware.
Earthenware is also porous in nature which enables a better circulation of heat and moisture while cooking, retaining the flavors and nutrients.
Read our blog on Earthenware to know more about their benefits.
Solid- ceramic
Pure ceramic cookware is a healthy option and has been around for ages. However, you should beware of ceramic-coated pans which are essentially metallic. The eroded ceramic coating can leach harmful metals into your food.
Stainless Steel
Food-grade stainless steel, without nickel, is a safer option than regular stainless steel utensils that contain nickel. When scratched hard while cleansing, nickel can get exposed and later leak into the food.
Cast-iron - The non-coated and real cast iron cookware does not leak anything toxic into your food and is ideal for non-stick cooking when seasoned well. It is good for including some extra iron into your meals as well.
So next time you go cookware shopping, keep these tips in mind.
Further Read: Three simple steps to a plastic-free, healthy wellness kitchen
Help Vote
(4)
Comments
(0)
Share
Disclaimer: The health journeys, blogs, videos and all other content on Wellcure is for educational purposes only and is not to be considered a ‘medical advice’ ‘prescription’ or a ‘cure’ for diseases. Any specific changes by users, in medication, food & lifestyle, must be done under the guidance of licensed health practitioners. The views expressed by the users are their personal views and Wellcure claims no responsibility for them.
