With certainty, Pringles is one of the most popular chips in the whole world and people enjoy eating them during different occasions, i.e. whether they are craving a salty snack while watching their favorite TV series on Netflix or need something to dip into their favorite sauce. However, despite being a lot of people’s favorite snack, this can of chips is not healthy at all and it is actually filled with toxins and carcinogens and has no nutritive value whatsoever! Believe it or not, there is almost everything in these chips than actual potatoes!
How Are Pringles Made?
During the first phase of production, wheat, corn, rice, and potato flakes are mixed in order to create a type of dough which is then pressed onto different molds. Then, the molds are placed into boiling oil and they are cooked until they are blown dry. In the last phase, the chips are sprayed with powdered flavors and are packed into the specific cans. One of the most concerning ingredients is acrylamide, a by-product which has carcinogenic properties that were shown in laboratory tests performed with animals. Bigger dosages of it are toxic for the nervous system of both humans and animals.
What Is Acrylamide?
Acrylamide is formed when food is prepared at high temperatures, usually higher than 100 degrees Celsius, whether it is baked or fried, including potato chips. Once there is a fairly dry and brown/yellowish surface, it means that the acrylamide has been formed. This chemical is also manufactured in industries for the purpose of polyacrylamide gel production.
The levels of this chemical in food differs and it depends on the manufacturer, the cooking time, as well as the temperature and method of the cooking processes.
Nonetheless, scientists do not yet know for sure if the acrylamide levels found in some foods are a health threat to humans. For this purpose, clear evidence from human studies is needed. Hence, this is why acrylamide’s status is still “a probable human carcinogen”.
Healthy Baked Potato Chips Recipe
To avoid overexposure to toxins and chemicals, why not make your own, healthy version of Pringles? Check out our favorite recipe below:
A lb of russet potatoes, washed and sliced into thin pieces
A tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
A quarter tsp of sea salt
Butter
Preparation: Preheat the oven to 450 F and coat a baking sheet by rubbing it with butter. Then, in a bowl, add the slices of potato, the olive oil, and the salt and mix them well. Next, spread the slices into the baking sheet in a single layer. Once the oven has heated up well, put the baking sheet and bake the potatoes for 25 minutes or until the chips become light golden and appear crunchy. Make sure you do not overcook them (avoid them from becoming overly brown). Remove them from the oven and leave them to cool down and then serve.
To learn more about the dangers of the acrylamide in potato chips, make sure you watch the whole video shown below:
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