Norwegian scientists from the University of Science and Technology in Trondheim conducted an experiment in which they determined the effect of a gas stove and various types of fats used in frying (butter, margarine) on the amount of hazardous compounds that enter the air when cooking at high temperatures. The list of such compounds was previously determined by the International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organization. These compounds are included in group 2A – “very likely carcinogenic to humans”
Scientists roasted 17 steaks, each weighing 400 grams, for 15 minutes and measured the levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) such as naphthalene and benzpyrene, heterocyclic amines and aldehydes, and ultrafine particles less than 100 nanometers in diameter.
It turned out that when frying steak in margarine on a gas stove, the largest amount of PAHs (naphthalene) is released, and the amount of other carcinogens exceeded the permissible limits when frying meat on a gas stove, regardless of the fat used. The amount of ultrafine particles, which are easily captured by the lungs, was also unacceptably high “on gas”.
The authors of the experiment noticed that the number of unexplored, but hazardous to health, particles can also exceed acceptable thresholds. The same pollutants that scientists have found can cause dangerous diseases, including lung cancer.