Rodent of the week: Food additive tied to lung cancer
January 2nd, 2009
A study, published in the January issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, was performed in laboratory mice but, according to the authors, should serve as a warning to people with a high risk of lung cancer or who have the disease to avoid the additive — inorganic phosphates — as much as possible.
Inorganic phosphates are found in many processed foods, such as meats, cheeses, beverages and bakery products. The substances are used to increase water content and improve food texture. In the 1990s, the average adult daily diet contained about 470 milligrams of inorganic phosphates, said the lead author of the study, Myung-Haing Cho of Seoul National University. But today’s intake could be more than 1,000 milligrams a day depending on one’s diet.