Analysis of Acrylamide in Cooking Oil Post Cooking

A primary area of concern for individuals affected through Health Disparities is cancers. The underlying reasons for extremely high cancer rates are still not clear. Scientific investigators have recently reported that acrylamide (ACM) derivatives are a common cancer‐causing chemical agent. Reports suggest that ACM is found in fried and baked foods. Also, studies indicate that ACM is highly toxic to nuclear components therefore affecting DNA synthesis. The main metabolic exposure route of ACM is suspected to be food. This scientific breakthrough may be a link to cancer‐related diseases in health disparity groups. To study this effect, cooking oil used in deep‐frying was examined at several points in the deep‐frying process for ACM. Several foods (fish, chicken, and potatoes) were cooked to examine the effect of different types of food on the level of ACM in the oil. The resulting oil samples were extracted using solid phase extraction. Sample analysis was achieved on a high performance liquid chromatograph with a C‐18 column and a mobile phase of 80:20 acetonitrile:water. As the oil was heated, higher concentrations of ACM was detected. After heating, potatoes resulted in the highest concentration and fish the lowest concentration of ACM in the oil. These data followed trends in published research indicating that foods with higher levels of carbohydrates contain higher concentrations of ACM.