Cellphones May Cause Cancer: The WHO Says Cellphones and Pickles May Cause Cancer
Should I stop eating kosher dills? The World Health Organization classified cellphones as "possibly carcinogenic" on Tuesday, placing them in a category that includes the pesticide DDT, engine exhaust, and pickled vegetables. Wait pickled vegetables?
Yup, pickled vegetables. When Chinese hospitals started systematically tracking cancer incidence 50 years ago, they found that certain regions suffered from startlingly high rates of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, a cancer of the cells lining the esophagus.
Should I stop eating kosher dills? The World Health Organization classified cellphones as "possibly carcinogenic" on Tuesday, placing them in a category that includes the pesticide DDT, engine exhaust, and pickled vegetables. Wait pickled vegetables?
Yup, pickled vegetables. When Chinese hospitals started systematically tracking cancer incidence 50 years ago, they found that certain regions suffered from startlingly high rates of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, a cancer of the cells lining the esophagus.
Epidemiologists observed that people in these areas relied on fermented vegetables for nutrients for long parts of the year, when fresh veggies weren't available. Researchers now think the culprit is the fungi responsible for the fermentation process. As part of their natural life cycle, the microorganisms release a variety of possible carcinogens.
As far as the Explainer can tell, there's no evidence suggesting that directly acidified, nonfermented cucumbers—the kind you probably buy at large grocery stores—cause cancer. It would be hard to conduct a clinical study, though, because Americans eat just four pounds of pickles per year [PDF]. The methodologies and questionnaires vary, but participants in Asian pickle studies generally report eating pickled vegetables several times per week.
While commercial pickles might not belong in the same "possibly carcinogenic" category as their fermented cousins, they do have their problems. Some researchers believe fermentation alone doesn't fully explain the higher rates of gastric cancers in Japan and South Korea, and they suggest that the nutrients that enable fresh vegetables to prevent cancer may degrade in the acidic solution. So don't fulfill your recommended daily vegetable intake with pickles.
As far as the Explainer can tell, there's no evidence suggesting that directly acidified, nonfermented cucumbers—the kind you probably buy at large grocery stores—cause cancer. It would be hard to conduct a clinical study, though, because Americans eat just four pounds of pickles per year [PDF]. The methodologies and questionnaires vary, but participants in Asian pickle studies generally report eating pickled vegetables several times per week.
While commercial pickles might not belong in the same "possibly carcinogenic" category as their fermented cousins, they do have their problems. Some researchers believe fermentation alone doesn't fully explain the higher rates of gastric cancers in Japan and South Korea, and they suggest that the nutrients that enable fresh vegetables to prevent cancer may degrade in the acidic solution. So don't fulfill your recommended daily vegetable intake with pickles.
Most pickles also contain high levels of sodium, which is widely believed to increase the risk of stomach cancer.
By Slate
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