Biomedical rationale for acrylamide regulation and methods of detection

Abstract

Acrylamide is the product of the Maillard reaction, which occurs when starchy, asparagine‐rich foods including potato or grain products and coffee are fried, baked, roasted, or heated. Studies in rodents provide evidence that acrylamide is carcinogenic and a male reproductive harmful agent when administered in exceedingly high levels. A 2002 study identified acrylamide in popular consumer food and beverage products, stimulating the European Union (EU) and California to legislate public notice of acrylamide presence in fried and baked foods, and coffee products. The regulatory legislation enacted in the EU and California has scientists working to develop foods and processes aimed at reducing acrylamide formation and advancing rapid and accurate analytical methods for the quantitative and qualitative determination of acrylamide in food and beverage products. The purpose of this review is to survey the studies performed on rodents and humans that identified the potential health impact of acrylamide in the human diet, and provide insight into established and emerging analytical methods used to detect acrylamide in blood, aqueous samples, and food.

Acrylamide in Bakery Products: A Review on Health Risks, Legal Regulations and Strategies to Reduce Its Formation

“…Acrylamide is considered to have appeared since the discovery of fire and food cooking by methods of baking, frying and grilling, but then its toxic effects in humans and animals, namely nervous system damage, pre-and post-natal development, negative effects on the male reproductive system, the possibility of cancer and genotoxicity were not known [11][12][13][14][15][16].…”

Instrumentation for Routine Analysis of Acrylamide in French Fries: Assessing Limitations for Adoption

“…For fried products such as French fries, defatting is commonly implemented using a nonpolar solvent like hexanes. The filtered extract is analyzed by LC-MS in accordance with well-established methods [10,17]. For effective quantitation, an internal standard like acrylamide-d3 or acrylamide (1,2,3- 13 C 3 ) should be used when performing LC-or GC-methods.…”

“…Foods and beverages like French fries, potato chips, roasted coffee beans, crackers and many others are produced by frying or baking at elevated temperatures ( Table 1 ), which provide conditions to convert asparagine and reducing sugars into acrylamide via the Maillard reaction (see Scheme 1 ) [ 8 , 9 ]. French fries and potato chips can easily exceed the threshold acrylamide levels set by the EU, and measurement strategies are required to comply with government regulation [ 10 ].…”

“…Recent reviews describe emerging methods for acrylamide measurement, but with the exception of FT-NIR, many of these techniques are not feasible in an industrial setting due to the complexity of the methods and need for well-trained personnel [ 10 , 13 , 14 ]. LC- and GC-MS are the most commonly employed methods of acrylamide quantitation, but recently FT-NIR has been proposed as a viable quality assurance method [ 15 ].…”

“…FT-NIR methods developed for acrylamide quantification would be well-suited for potato processing facilities and thus provided motivation for the present study. French fries were selected for analysis because acrylamide levels tend to be elevated for this product [ 10 ]. Additionally, correlation of acrylamide concentration to fryer oil quality has been included in the current investigation.…”