An air fryer is a kitchen appliance that has gained massive popularity over the years, thanks to its capability to produce foods that are crispy on the outside. It also cooks a wide range of foods, ranging from vegetables to meats.
The fact that it uses hot air to fry food instead of heated oil also makes it even more loveable. Even so, there are still safety concerns when it comes to using the air fryer. This brings us to the question, “What are the side effects of air fryer?” We have cruised the internet to bring you a detailed answer to this question.
Cooking some foods at high temperatures, such as those in the air fryer, can result in the formation of harmful compounds such as acrylamide, heterocyclic amines, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. These compounds are the products of the reactions that occur between sugars and free amino acids in the presence of high temperatures.
According to research, these compounds increase the risk of cancer in the body. Read on to understand more about the safety concerns associated with using an air fryer.
Air Fryer Health Disadvantages
One good thing about an air fryer is that it only utilizes a small amount of oil to fry food. This greatly reduces the fat content in your food, saving you from excessive consumption of oil. However, many people take advantage of this fact to consume a lot of air-fried foods deeming them healthy.
On the contrary, consuming small amounts of oil regularly can still harm you, particularly if you use an unhealthy type of oil. Also, air-fried foods are not so different from deep-fried foods. This means that consuming them in large amounts can also put you at risk of heart failure, certain types of cancer, hypertension, and diabetes.
Health experts recommend sticking to healthy cooking methods such as boiling, stewing, and steaming. Other disadvantages of an air fryer include: –
- Most of them are made of plastic, which can affect your body if they leach in food.
- Air fryers are bulky kitchen appliances that occupy a lot of space on the kitchen counter.
- Air fryer baskets are usually small and can only cook in batches worth one or two servings.
- Air fryers are typically costly.
- They are not ideal for cooking foods that contain sugar and amino acids.
- They cook food at very high temperatures and pressure, and this means that they can be risky to operate.
- The air fryer operating system requires learning before cooking food using an air fryer; otherwise, many unexpected occurrences can happen, including burning food.
- All air fryers are not made with bisphenol A (BPA) free plastic.
The Top 2 Best BPA-Free Air Fryer
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Chefman TurboFry® Touch Air Fryer, XL 8-Qt Family...40 | View customer reviews and price |
Do Air Fryers Produce Harmful Chemicals?
The short answer is yes. Air fryers can produce acrylamide and other harmful chemicals, particularly if you cook foods that contain free amino acids and sugar. Considering air fryers cook food at high temperatures, these elements can react and produce harmful chemicals.
However, unlike deep fryers that produce high levels of acrylamide, air fryers may not produce much, and this makes them somewhat safer.
Is Air Fryer Radiation Bad?
Unlike a microwave oven which cooks food using electromagnetic radiation known as microwaves, an air fryer does not emit any kind of radiation.
In essence, it only circulates heated air around lightly-oiled food, just like a convection oven. Therefore, when it comes to harmful radiation, an air fryer is safe as it does not emit any.
Is Air Fryer Harmful to Your Health?
Air frying food is way healthier than deep frying it in oil. To give you an idea, it significantly cuts the content of oil in food, something that reduces the calorie count by up to 70% or 80%. Therefore, it makes sense to say that an air fryer is slightly safe for your health.
However, it can also harm you in several ways. For instance, food cooked in an air fryer can form a carcinogenic compound known as acrylamide. It is worth noting that while an air fryer won’t emit any radiation, the formation of such chemical compounds in your food can cause adverse health effects, including putting you at risk of cancer.
Are Air Fryers Safe for Your Health?
Harmful as air fryers are to your health, they also have good qualities that make them somewhat safe for use in the kitchen. For instance, unlike a microwave oven that can produce harmful microwave radiation, air fryers do not.
This means that when using an air fryer, you don’t have to worry about your proximity from it or the direction you face for fear of getting hit by harmful waves.
Air fryers only radiate heat, which then circulates around the food with the help of a fan. The use of little oil to fry food also makes the air fryer a go-to kitchen appliance.
However, these few qualities don’t make an air fryer safe for your health. This is because using a small amount of oil to cook food does not change the fact that the food is still fried.
Why Are Air Fryers Bad for You?
The type of food you eat, let alone the type of kitchen appliance you use to cook it, can affect your health in one way or another. For instance, consuming fried foods increases your risk of cardiovascular diseases such as high blood pressure and heart diseases.
Similarly, eating air-fried food can increase your long-term risk of some types of cancers. This is because air-fried food can produce harmful chemicals such as acrylamide and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
Cooking at high temperatures and pressure also increases the risk of accidents and injuries. Since an air fryer cooks food at the named conditions, it can explode into flames and injure you and others.
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Final Thoughts About The Side Effects Of Air Fryer
It is worth noting that while an air fryer is one of the most sought-after kitchen apparatus, it can also cause adverse health effects.
One major drawback of this appliance is that it can form harmful chemicals in the food and put your health at risk. Also, the use of oil in your food can increase your chances of developing cardiovascular diseases.
Keeping this in mind, it is prudent to either avoid or limit the use of air fryers to cook your food and opt for healthier cooking methods such as steaming and boiling.
