“Health from eating” series | Packing rice in plastic bags not only causes food poisoning but also causes cancer?

Do you usually pack your meals in bags or lunch boxes? In fact, in our daily lives, in order to save costs and pack conveniently, we will choose to use plastic bags to pack food. So, will it be harmful to us to eat food packed in plastic bags frequently? Today, we will answer this question for you.

Why are plastic bags so popular among businesses?

The biggest reason is its convenience. Compared with other containers, plastic bags generally take up less space, are lighter, easier to store and carry. In addition, the waterproof property of plastic bags is also one of the reasons for their widespread use.

What kind of harm does plastic have on our human body?

1. Contains multiple toxins

Plastic products used for general food packaging are mostly polystyrene dimers and trimers. If they are used to hold hot food, they can produce more than ten kinds of toxic substances at high temperatures. These toxic substances may penetrate into food and damage human liver and kidneys, and may also interfere with human endocrine system, causing decreased fertility and male feminization.

2. Prone to gallstones

Substandard plastic lunch boxes and plastic bags mainly contain industrial calcium carbonate and paraffin. Calcium carbonate can cause constipation, gallstones or kidney stones; long-term accumulation of paraffin in the human body can cause diarrhea, etc.

3. Increased risk of cancer

Colored plastic bags are recycled plastic bags, and the colorants they use usually contain the carcinogen benzopyrene, which may be transferred into food after contact with food, causing chronic poisoning. Benzopyrene is a type of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which have strong carcinogenic effects. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has long identified benzopyrene as a Class 1 carcinogen (a substance that has been clearly identified as carcinogenic to humans).

Can food in plastic bags be heated in the microwave?

Of course not. The plastic bags we often use are generally made of polyethylene (PE), which is easy to melt under high temperature. Although the heating effect of the microwave oven will directly penetrate the plastic bag, the heat will be transferred between the food and the plastic bag, causing the plastic bag to melt and cause harm to the human body.

Which plastic products can be heated in a microwave?

We need to find the triangle mark with a number on the plastic container, which is usually on the bottom of the container. If the number in the triangle is 5, it means that this is a plastic material PP (polypropylene) that can be heated in a microwave.

Author: Zhang Yixuan and Liu Hao, Luoyang Normal University

Review expert: Wang Yao, associate professor of the School of Food and Bioengineering, Henan University of Science and Technology