Health IQ: Europe bans smoky flavours. Are your chips safe?

Europe bans smoky flavoured snacks

Europeans may soon have to ditch their favourite smoky barbeque chips. The European Union (EU) recently agreed to ban several artificial smoke flavourings due to potential cancer risks over the next few years. These flavourings are commonly used in chips, cheese and barbecue sauce.

The concern centres around genotoxicity, which is the ability of a chemical to damage DNA and potentially lead to cancer. According to a European Commission report published in April, genotoxicity is linked to the purification process of smoke before the flavouring is added to food.

“The relevant decisions are based on scientific assessments by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) which concluded that for all eight smoke flavourings assessed, genotoxicity concerns are either confirmed or can’t be ruled out,” the report stated.

To achieve that smoky taste in snacks, sauces and soups, food manufacturers often turn to smoked flavourings. These flavourings are created through a process called pyrolysis, where wood is burned and the smoke is carefully purified. This purification removes harmful elements like ash and tar, leaving behind a concentrated liquid smoke that can be added to food, according to the EFSA.

However, the concern lies with leftover chemicals in some smoked flavours. These include styrene, which has been classified as a probable human carcinogen.

Read more about the ban and Health Canada’s stance on smoky flavourings in the country.

Canada extends dental plan. Who is eligible?

Canada’s dental care plan officially entered the second phase of its planned rollout.

“For families who have children 18 and under, and to persons with disabilities, that service is now here for you. You can apply today, and be able to get the help your family needs,” Health Minister Mark Holland said in an announcement on June 27.

The program criteria state that eligibility is for households with a family net income of less than $90,000.

Holland said the program had already helped a large number of people.

“In six weeks, 200,000 people have gotten care. Almost 11,500 providers representing about 40 per cent of providers across the country are participating. Almost all hygienists, almost all denturists, are participating,” he said.

Holland’s announcement was the second last phase of the rollout and starting in 2025, all remaining eligible Canadian residents will be able to apply online.

Read more about the federal dental care plan.

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Physical inactivity is a ‘silent threat,’ WHO warns

— WHAT EXPERTS ARE SAYING —

A growing number of people in Canada and globally are physically inactive, the World Health Organization said in a new study, calling it a “silent threat” that needs greater attention.

Data published in The Lancet Global Health journal on June 25 showed that more than a third (31.3 per cent) of the global adult population — or roughly 1.8 billion people — did not meet the WHO’s recommended levels of physical activity in 2022.

This was an increase of almost four percentage points from 2016, when 27.5 per cent of the global population was insufficiently physically active.

“Unfortunately, the world is not going into the right direction,” Ruediger Krech, the WHO’s director of health promotion, said during a virtual news conference. “Physical inactivity is a silent threat to global health, contributing significantly to the burden of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, cancers, diabetes or respiratory diseases.”

The WHO study looked at the levels of physical activity for 197 countries and territories between 2000 and 2022. It included 507 surveys from 163 countries and territories.

It concluded that about half the countries, including Canada, have increasing trends of physical inactivity, while the other half have made progress over the past decade.

Scott Lear, a professor of health sciences at the Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, said the “distressing” part about the Canadian data is that there are probably more people who are physically inactive because people tend to overestimate their level of activity when self-reporting.

For adults, the WHO recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity, or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity physical activity, or its equivalent combination of activities, each week.