|
medpundit |
||
 |
 |
|
Sunday, April 28, 2002“The World Health Organization will gather experts for an "urgent" conference in June to assess the possible public health risks from acrylamide, the cancer-causing chemical that Swedish scientists reported this week was found at high levels in many fried and baked high-starch foods. The WHO said the meeting, details of which were undetermined, was being called to analyze both the Swedish report and other information to determine the nature of the possible risk to people, to assess levels of acrylamide in food in nations other than Sweden, and to develop "appropriate guidance to reduce exposure to acrylamide." Let’s hope they don’t get carried away and make recommendations to the EU about regulating cooking. Meanwhile, in the US, the study is also drawing concerns: “Officials at the FDA and the Grocery Manufacturers of America said yesterday that they hoped to get copies of the Swedish data soon so they can analyze the testing process and determine whether the results can be repeated. They said that the Swedish results should be considered preliminary. "This is the first time the compound has been found in large amounts," said GMA spokesman Gene Grabowski. "The industry has been quite concerned and is trying hard to find out what's going on. Scientists haven't been able to assess the nature of what's really involved because the data is unobtainable." (italics are mine) That last bit sums up the whole problem with this study. When researchers publicize their sensational conclusions without providing the data to back them up, it usually means they don’t have good data. posted by Sydney on 4/28/2002 06:11:00 AM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
|
