Study find possible link between inhaling chemical in popcorn and lung cancer
Posted on September 27, 2007
Studies have shown that consumers of butter-flavored popcorn are at risk for developing lung cancer.
The problem was previously only a concern for popcorn factory workers, according to The New York Times. When the chemical diacetyl, which creates popcorn’s buttery flavor, is heated, it becomes a vapor. If someone is regularly exposed to the chemical vapor over a long period of time, constant inhalation can cause damage to the airways of the lungs.
Sophomore and popcorn-lover, Erika Orantes, was shocked to hear about the discovery.
“It doesn’t say that on the package,” Orantes said.
According to spokeswoman Cathy Yingling, Pop Weaver removed diacetyl from its bags after hearing negative public reactions regarding the discovery of its correlation to lung cancer.
Stephanie Childs, a spokeswoman for the largest maker of microwave popcorn, ConAgra Foods, said that they will soon stop using the chemical.
The Times reported that Orville Redenbacher and Act II, continue to use diacetyl on their buttered popcorn according to a spokesperson for the Food and Drug Administration.
“They should find a substitute for the flavoring,” sophomore Rachel Lafferty said.
“Maybe this is more of a positive discovery than a negative one, because now they can try and take [diacetyl] out of other foods it’s in.”
According to the Daily News-Record, workers in popcorn plants are required to inhale hundreds of bags a day in order to test its fumes, which is why most of these cases involve popcorn factory workers. In fact, the resulting condition has even been called “the popcorn worker’s lung.”
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) sent out alerts in 2003 to 4,000 popcorn plants suggesting they should protect its workers from diacetyl, according to an article published in Law Offices of Heygood, Orr, Reyes & Bartolomei online.
Recently, however, according to an article published in The New York Times, a 53-year-old popcorn-lover from Colorado developed the same disease. After becoming increasingly short of breath, Dr. Cecile Rose from the National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver diagnosed him with a disease linked to chronic exposure to mold, dust and bacteria. Rose took a second look at his symptoms when she noticed that nothing in the man’s history was related to inhaling large amounts of those things.
Taking a shot in the dark, Rose then asked the man if he ate a lot of popcorn.
He said he enjoyed popcorn so much that he has had at least two bags a day for the past ten years, inhaling the buttery-goodness each time he opens a new bag. Rose diagnosed the man with lung cancer, and after cutting popcorn completely out of his diet, the man has not only lost weight but his condition has slightly improved, reported The New York Times.
Living in a house that goes through about eight-to-ten bags per week, sophomore Stephanie Haas and her family has a passion for popcorn that is too strong to let what they’ve heard about the chemical alter their eating habits, she said.
“We always buy Pop Secret, but I don’t think we’ve even read the labels since we’ve heard about it,” Haas said.
Others disagree.
“I love the smell of popcorn, but now I think I’ll always open it to the side,” said Orantes. “If there’s a warning on cigarettes, shouldn’t there be a warning on popcorn, too?”
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