4‐Hydroxynonenal (HNE), a Toxic Aldehyde in French Fries from Fast Food Restaurants

Abstract

The toxic lipid peroxidation product, α,β,4‐hydroxy‐2‐trans‐nonenal (HNE) concentration, was measured in French fries (FF) from six local fast food restaurants. FF were purchased between 2 and 3 pm from all six restaurants. FF were also purchased at 12, 2, 4, 6 pm from one and at 1, 3, 5, 7 pm from another restaurant. Samples were analyzed for total fat, fatty acid distribution and for HNE by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). HNE was confirmed by HPLC/MS. HNE concentrations in FF from the 6 fast food restaurants were between 7.83 and 32.15 µg HNE/100 g FF and between 0.9 and 4.9 µg HNE/g extracted fat. HNE concentrations in FF purchased at 12, 2, 4, 6 pm were between 19.07 and 32.15 µg/g of FF and purchased at 1, 3, 5, 7 pm were between 7.47 and 10.21 µg HNE/100 g of FF. Differences in FA distribution were observed in the samples from some restaurants. FF which contained higher levels of linoleic acid (LA) also contained more HNE. It is clear that HNE is produced during the heating process of the frying oils and is incorporated into FF. Frequently consumed foods containing considerable amounts of HNE, a toxic aldehyde, may be a public health concern since HNE toxicity is related to a number of common pathological conditions.

Formation of malondialdehyde, 4‐hydroxy‐hexenal and 4‐hydroxy‐nonenal during deep‐frying of potato sticks and chicken breast meat in vegetable oils

“…Seppanen & Csallany () found that the level of HNE in the potatoes fried in soya bean oil was 59.64 ± 11.91 mg per 100 g. This was considerably higher than what we found in our FF, and this could be because of the air bubbles in the oil. Nonetheless, our results corroborate the findings of Csallany et al (), in which the level of HNE in the commercial FF fried in linoleic acid‐rich oils was approximately 7.47–32.15 μg.…”

“…Furthermore, they contribute to the pathogenesis of many diseases and are considered mutagenic, carcinogenic and cytotoxic (Esterbauer et al, 1991;Sousa et al, 2017;Wang et al, 2017;Soulage et al, 2018). Particularly, MDA and HNE are considered by the Belgian Superior Health Council to be of major concern to human health (Douny et al, 2015), and so is HNE in the United States (Csallany et al, 2015).…”

Malondialdehyde, 4‐Hydroxy‐2‐Hexenal, and 4‐Hydroxy‐2‐Nonenal in Vegetable Oils: Formation Kinetics and Application as Oxidation Indicators

“…[7] The ingestion of MDA, HHE, and HNE has been considered to promote inflammation, disturb the redox homeostasis, and cause several diseases including atherogenesis, diabetes, and even cancer. [8,9] MDA, HHE, and HNE have attracted attention in some regions: the Belgian Superior Health Council has considered MDA and HNE as major concerns for human health; [10] HNE has been recognized as a potential public health concern in America; [11] and the European Food Safety Authority scientific committee has suggested the threshold of toxicological concern (TTC) level of exposure for MDA, HHE, and HNE as 30, 1.5, and 1.5 μg kg À1 bw/day, respectively. [4] Remarkably, the number of scientific articles reporting MDA, HHE, and HNE as related to the food domain are very few (Table S1, Supporting Information).…”

Understanding the difference of 4‐hydroxyhexenal and 4‐hydroxynonenal formation in various vegetable oils during thermal processes by kinetic and thermodynamic study

“…It was not until HHE and HNE were detected in infant formulas that they attracted the interest of the food science community (Surh et al, 2007;Michalski et al, 2008). HNE has recently been recognised as a potential major human health concern by the Belgian Superior Health Council and public health officials in the United States (Csallany et al, 2015;Douny et al, 2015). The scientific committee of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has established a threshold of toxicological concern (TTC) of 1.5 lg per kg body weight (bw) per day for both HHE and HNE (Papastergiadis et al, 2014b).…”

“…HHE and HNE were detected in 16% and 63% of the samples, respectively, and were especially concentrated in foods rich in PUFA that were processed at high temperatures. Other studies determined that HHE and HNE could be incorporated into fried foods during the frying process (Csallany et al, 2015;Ma & Liu, 2017). HHE and HNE formation during digestion of fish oil and cod liver oil had also been examined, and results indicated HHE and HNE could enter the bloodstream once they reached the small intestine (Larsson et al, 2016;Steppeler et al, 2016).…”