Because of the continued demand for fried meals and increased health consciousness, air fryers have recently become more and more popular. Americans consume more potatoes than any other vegetable, and French fries and other frozen goods make up 40% of this total. Manufacturers did not build air fryers to take the place of conventional, beneficial food preparation techniques like roasting and grilling, but rather to provide a more wholesome way to prepare deep-fried dishes. Foods that are deep-fried often have a lot fatter than meals prepared in other methods. Air fryers can help people lose weight. Increased consumption of fried foods is directly associated with a higher risk of obesity. This prevents people from consuming excessive amounts of calories and fat from deep-fried foods. Switching to air-fried dishes from deep-fried ones and consuming fewer harmful oils every day can help with weight loss.
The danger of harmful acrylamide production is lessened by air fryers. When food is fried in oil, dangerous chemicals like acrylamide can form. This chemical forms in various foods when they are cooked at high heat, such as when deep frying. While air fryers offer advantages, they also have a special set of negative impacts.
A healthy diet is not always ensured by air frying. While air fryers can produce healthier meal alternatives than deep fryers, reducing one's intake of fried foods completely can have a positive impact on one's health. A healthy diet cannot simply be achieved by switching to air-fried items in place of all deep-fried foods. People should concentrate on eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein for optimum health.
According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, acrylamide may be linked to the onset of a number of cancers, including endometrial, ovarian, pancreatic, breast, and oesophageal cancer. Multiple studies have found a link between dietary acrylamide and ovarian, endometrial, or renal cancers, even though the findings are equivocal. By converting to air frying, people can lower their chance of consuming food containing acrylamide.
Whether air fryers are a healthy cooking choice is a topic of some discussion. On the one hand, they can be an excellent substitute for deep-frying dishes since they can achieve comparable results with less oil. This can make them a healthier option for deep frying, which is advantageous for those attempting to consume less harmful fats.
However, it's important to keep in mind that air fryers are still a sort of dry heat cooking, which means they may create the same kinds of potentially dangerous substances as other dry heat cooking techniques, like grilling or roasting. High heat can cause these substances, known as advanced glycation end products (AGEs), to develop on proteins or sugars. More study is required to definitively state that AGEs may lead to inflammation and other health issues, despite some studies' suggestions to the contrary.
Overall, it's crucial to keep in mind that no one cooking technique is inherently "good" or "unhealthy." Eating a range of whole, unprocessed foods and selecting cooking techniques that maintain the nutritional worth of those foods as much as possible are the keys to a healthy diet. When cooking whole, unprocessed foods instead of heavily processed or pre-packaged foods, which might contain harmful elements like added sugars, salt, and bad fats, utilizing an air fryer can be a good alternative.
ZDS DMO II Marie-Claire Gaas, RND
References:
- How much should I weigh for my height and age?
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323446
- Dietary Acrylamide and Human Cancer: A Systematic Review of Literature
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4164905/
- Do Air Fryers Have Health Benefits?
https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/air-fryers#:~:text=entire%20family%20meal.-,Are%20Air%2DFried%20Foods%20Better%20for%20You%3F,harmful%20effects%20of%20oil%20frying.
- Impact of Air Frying on Cholesterol and Fatty Acids Oxidation in Sardines: Protective Effects of Aromatic Herbs
