Elevated Levels of Mercapturic Acids of Acrolein and Crotonaldehyde in the Urine of Chinese Women in Singapore Who Regularly Cook at Home

Abstract

Lung cancer is unusually common among non-smoking women in Southeastern Asia but the causes of this frequently fatal disease are not well understood. Several epidemiology studies indicate that inhalation of fumes from high temperature Chinese style cooking with a wok may be a cause. Only one previous study investigated uptake of potential toxicants and carcinogens by women who cook with a wok. We enrolled three-hundred twenty-eight non-smoking women from Singapore for this study. Each provided a spot urine sample and answered a questionnaire concerning their cooking habits and other factors. The urine samples were analyzed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for mercapturic acid metabolites of acrolein (3-hydroxypropylmercapturic acid), crotonaldehyde (3-hydroxy-1-methylpropylmercapturic acid), and benzene (S-phenylmercapturic acid), accepted biomarkers of uptake of these toxic and carcinogenic compounds. We observed statistically significant effects of wok cooking frequency on levels of 3-hydroxypropylmercapturic acid and 3-hydroxy-1-methylpropylmercapturic acid, but not S-phenylmercapturic acid. Women who cooked greater than 7 times per week had a geometric mean of 2600 (95% CI, 2189-3090) pmol/mg creatinine 3-hydroxypropylmercapturic acid compared to 1901 (95% CI, 1510-2395) pmol/mg creatinine when cooking less than once per week (P for trend 0.018). The corresponding values for 3-hydroxy-1-methylpropylmercapturic acid were 1167 (95% CI, 1022-1332) and 894 (95% CI, 749-1067) pmol/mg creatinine (P for trend 0.008). We conclude that frequent wok cooking leads to elevated exposure to the toxicants acrolein and crotonaldehyde, but not benzene. Kitchens should be properly ventilated to decrease exposure to potentially toxic and carcinogenic fumes produced during Chinese style wok cooking.

Biomonitoring of Urinary Benzene Metabolite SPMA in the General Population in Central Italy

“…We also examined other published data regarding urinary concentrations of SPMA in subjects without occupational exposure, all analytically determined by means of HPLC-MS/MS and published from 2011 to 2015. Only seven papers reported such values, four of which referred to population studies [ 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 ] and three to controls in studies on occupational exposures [ 22 , 23 , 24 ].…”

Potential Adverse Public Health Effects Afforded by the Ingestion of Dietary Lipid Oxidation Product Toxins: Significance of Fried Food Sources

“…One epidemiological study reported in 2013 found an elevated incidence of lung cancer in non-smoking Chinese women who cooked/fried food at very high temperatures using a traditional Chinese-style wok process, and hence had a high level of exposure to cooking oil fumes arising therefrom [130]. Supporting laboratory evidence for this hypothesis was provided by the observation that these women participants excreted significantly higher creatinine (Cn)-normalised concentrations of acrolein and crotonaldehyde (the latter the next higher trans-2-alkenal homologue from acrolein) as their mercapturate metabolites.…”

Cooking Fumes and Relative Diseases

“…According to the study carried out by Hecht et al [45], exposed to CFs has statistically significant effects on the levels of 3-hydroxy propylmercapturic acid and 3-hydroxy-1-methylpropylmercapturic acid, but not Sphenylmercapturic acid. The level of creatinine 3-hydroxypropylmercapturic acid of women cooking more 7 times a week was 36.8% higher than that of women who cooking less than once a week.…”