A recent alarming study has brought to light some popular snack foods that pose serious dangers.
Researchers from Rutgers University warned that people usually assume snacks deemed healthy in the past have zero threats to their health, but in reality, science is evolving, and new trends are emerging.
A study from Rutgers University warned that people consuming corn- and grain-based snack foods like popcorn, corn chips, and corn tortillas usually don't realize that they feature healthy mycotoxins related to cancer, immune deficiency, and organ damage.
The main threat arises from mycotoxins and mycoestrogens, which are chemicals that molds and fungi produce, such as Fusarium, and they grow naturally right on top of crops.
Researchers focused on zearalenone, which is a certain mycotoxin categorized as a mycoestrogen since it mimics the hormone estrogen. In a pilot study that was published in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, mycotoxin biomarkers were found in nearly 100% of the urine samples provided by pregnant participants. These were matched with those consuming higher amounts of these snacks.