As if the current state of politics across the world isn’t frightening enough, last month heralded the advent another thing to make us fear we’re about to drop dead. Impending nuclear warfare is one thing but this was another entirely – headlines were telling us that toast and crispy roast potatoes could give us cancer.
This is just one of a long list of things that certain newspapers tell us could give us cancer. Lightbulbs, baby food, blowjobs, coffee, parenthood, and even water have been singled out by The Daily Mail as increasing the risk of giving you the big C. However, one-off studies don’t necessarily mean that much – one study can be the beginning of deeper research into something, so one isolated statistic given by one place shouldn’t stress you out.
Cancer Research UK’s Emma Shields explains that the toast/crispy roast potatoes story is actually less conclusive than some news outlets made it sound. ‘To assess the level of risk, The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) compared the amount people are exposed to through diet with the amount that could pose a risk based on studies carried out on animals. This gives us what is known as the “Margin of Exposure”’, she says.
‘For substances that are potentially carcinogenic EFSA state that a Margin of 10,000 or more poses a low risk. When they looked at the margins for acrylamide, they found that they ranged from 425 for an average adult down to 50 for high-consuming toddlers. So since these values are well below the 10,000 benchmark, EFSA say that are a concern for human health.’
So, not such a risk, and it shows that when you read a headline saying ‘chocolate biscuits increase risk of cancer’ it means that there has been some research done which shows some tenuous link, but that’s all it is. It’s like saying ‘crossing road increases death risk’, which is probably does but it doesn’t mean you’re going to be the victim of a hit-and-run the next time you’re at a zebra crossing. ‘They can just be one study and you can base almost anything in just one study,’ Emma says.
‘It doesn’t mean there isn’t a risk of cancer with acrylamide,’ adds Emma. ‘It could mean there is a risk but we can’t measure it because it’s quite hard to measure, for example. The experts aren’t saying that this is a definite risk, but they’re saying “this is what we know” and this is what you can do if you’re worried about the risk.’
While the list of things-the-Daily-Mail-says-can-give-you-cancer is occasionally pretty fruity, preventing cancer literally comes down to eating more fruit. And all the obvious things too – quit smoking, cut down on drinking, stay at a healthy weight, avoid sun exposure. Yes, I know, it’s nothing new and it’s not terribly interesting, but these are the facts, While headline-grabbing “new” things that might give you cancer will always be promoted, we’ve known the major cancer risks for some time now.
‘It can seem like every day it’s changing and everyday it’s different advice – that this day one thing is good for you, and the next day it’s bad for you,’ Emma says. ‘But we know for sure that smoking, obesity, alcohol and the sun are all things linked to cancer. And that hasn’t changed and isn’t going to change any time soon. And when it comes to things like keeping a healthy weight, that comes down to things like keeping a healthy balanced diet. Indirectly having a healthy weight, but also things like high-fibre fruit and vegetables can directly reduce the risk of bowel cancer. We don’t like lightly coming out with those things, it does take years of research and getting enough information to back it up.’
Emma says that plenty of people ask her about these fringe risks without looking at the major lifestyle factors. ‘You have people being worried about deodorant giving them cancer but they’re still smoking’, she says. ‘Again, alcohol – a lot of people don’t’ understand the link between cancer and alcohol. A lot of people are worrying about other things and still drinking, so there are big things we know cause cancer, but people focus on the little random things.’ Stress is another interesting example, as there is no reliable evidence to suggest that stress in and of itself can cause cancer, but people who are stressed are more likely to do things like smoke or drink or overeat, so the risk of cancer is raised by these behaviours.
Four in every 10 cases of cancer is preventable, so listening to health messages is important without freaking out about what some vlogger said. This is one where listening to the consistent messages given by health experts is key. ‘What we don’t want is for people to turn off to all health messages, like “everything gives you cancer so why bother?’ Those main things can make a big difference. I would like for people to think about their overall lifestyle’, Emma adds.
So, it might not mean worrying about the level of crispiness on your potatoes but it might be thinking ‘I have fried potatoes four times a week maybe that’s something I should cut back on’.
Look, we never said that it was going to be interesting or revelatory. But, with some people feeling like the end is night every time they click on a ‘breathing air gives you cancer’ style headline, it’s worth knowing that you have a lot of control over your own health. Make sure you use it.
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.