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Aflatoxin commonly found in moldy foods is a mycotoxin produced naturally by certain species of Aspergillus (a type of mold). In addition to causing acute poisoning (a dose of about 10mg can be fatal), aflatoxin mold is also considered a cause of cirrhosis and liver cancer.1. What is aflatoxin fungus?
According to research documents of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Aflatoxin mold is very stable with heat. Moldy peanuts are roasted at very high temperatures, which will kill the mold spores, but their toxins are still not completely destroyed. Therefore, when peanuts are moldy, they should be thrown away, even if they are processed at high temperatures, eating them is still dangerous.
Aflatoxin toxin is known to be one of the most powerful agents of liver cancer, when a patient takes Aflatoxin by mouth, it will cause the body to contain a total amount of 2.5mg of Aflatoxin in a period of 90 days and have can lead to liver cancer after more than 1 year.
2. Why does aflatoxin fungus in moldy foods cause cancer?
Using foods containing Aflatoxin molds can cause cancer, but many families still don't understand this problem, with the simple thought that just rubbing and drying the mushrooms to remove all the toxins is toxic and harmful. can be used, so many people have "carried the disease into the body".
In fact, mold Aflatoxin is not only toxic because it exists in moldy dry food, but also because of its persistence. Aflatoxin is produced as a chemical substance, so it will not be lost when processed at a hot temperature or a boiling point of 1000 degrees Celsius. Scientific research has shown that, in order to remove a part of the toxicity, Aflatoxin must be at a higher temperature than boiling point (roasting and drying temperature from 1500 degrees Celsius to more than 2000 degrees Celsius).
Aflatoxin toxins, when entering the human body, will be converted by the liver into an active epoxide intermediate or hydrolyzed to become less toxic M1. There are at least 13 different forms of aflatoxin in nature, of which Aflatoxin B1 is the most toxic. Aflatoxin G1, G2 is produced from Aspergillus parasiticus. Aflatoxin B1 is produced by Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. Aflatoxin M1, M2 is produced and detected in cow's milk when cows eat food containing aflatoxin mold.
Any type of animal can be contaminated with aflatoxin. Adults have stronger resistance, so their tolerance is better, while children, when eating foods containing aflatoxin mold, will develop and grow slowly.
Bất kỳ loại thực vật nào cũng có thể nhiễm độc tố aflatoxin
Aflatoxin when absorbed into the body will attack the main organ, the liver, so it causes liver disease and cancer mainly. People with long-term aflatoxin exposure have an increased risk of liver cancer and gallbladder cancer.
3. How much Aflatoxin is safe?
According to US regulations, the content of aflatoxin mold in animal feed and food is recommended by FDA to be safe, including:
For animals raised for milk or for other purposes, nuts used for livestock, corn and feed (except cottonseed meal and maize): 20 (ppb). For seeds for livestock, maize or mature poultry: 100 (ppb). For nuts for hogs weighing 100 pounds or more and corn: 200 (ppb). For cottonseed meal for cows, pigs and poultry, for nuts for cows and corn: 300 (ppb). According to the regulations of Vietnam: The Ministry of Health of Vietnam regulates the maximum limit of Aflatoxin content (ML):
Type B1 in food: 5 ML (micrograms/kg). Types G1, G2, B1, B2 found in food: 15ML (micrograms/kg). Type M1 found in milk: 0.5 ML (micrograms/kg).
4. How to detect people infected with Aflatoxin
Along with the development of medicine, there are currently two ways that can help test the level of aflatoxin contamination in humans:
Method to calculate the amount of AFB1-guanine complex in urine. Method for calculating the amount of AFB1-albumin complex in serum. Up to now, there is no drug that can specifically treat aflatoxin. However, absolutely avoiding foods containing the mold aflatoxin and building a diet full of green vegetables can help reduce the risk of cancer.
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