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Challenges in estimating the validity of dietary acrylamide measurements

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Abstract

Background

Acrylamide is a chemical compound present in tobacco smoke and food, classified as a probable human carcinogen and a known human neurotoxin. Acrylamide is formed in foods, typically carbohydrate-rich and protein-poor plant foods, during high-temperature cooking or other thermal processing. The objectives of this study were to compare dietary estimates of acrylamide from questionnaires (DQ) and 24-h recalls (R) with levels of acrylamide adduct (AA) in haemoglobin.

Methods

In the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study, acrylamide exposure was assessed in 510 participants from 9 European countries, randomly selected and stratified by age, sex, with equal numbers of never and current smokers. After adjusting for country, alcohol intake, smoking status, number of cigarettes and energy intake, correlation coefficients between various acrylamide measurements were computed, both at the individual and at the aggregate (centre) level.

Results

Individual level correlation coefficient between DQ and R measurements (r DQ,R) was 0.17, while r DQ,AA and r R,AA were 0.08 and 0.06, respectively. In never smokers, r DQ,R, r DQ,AA and r R,AA were 0.19, 0.09 and 0.02, respectively. The correlation coefficients between means of DQ, R and AA measurements at the centre level were larger (r > 0.4).

Conclusions

These findings suggest that estimates of total acrylamide intake based on self-reported diet correlate weakly with biomarker AA Hb levels. Possible explanations are the lack of AA levels to capture dietary acrylamide due to individual differences in the absorption and metabolism of acrylamide, and/or measurement errors in acrylamide from self-reported dietary assessments, thus limiting the possibility to validate acrylamide DQ measurements.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC-WHO), Lyon, France

    Pietro Ferrari, Heinz Freisling, Geneviève Nicolas & Nadia Slimani

  2. Unit of Nutrition, Environment and Cancer, Cancer Epidemiology Research Programme, Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO-IDIBELL), Barcelona, Spain

    Eric J. Duell & Leila Lujan-Barroso

  3. Department of Cancer Epidemiology, German Cancer Research Centre, Heidelberg, Germany

    Rudolf Kaaks

  4. Biostatistics, Department of Public Health, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Leila Lujan-Barroso

  5. Inserm, Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health, U1018, Institut Gustave Roussy, 94805, Villejuif, France

    Françoise Clavel-Chapelon, Marie-Christine Boutron-Ruault & Laura Nailler

  6. Human Genetic Foundation (HuGeF), Torino, Italy

    Silvia Polidoro

  7. Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Federico II University, Naples, Italy

    Amalia Mattiello

  8. Molecular and Nutritional Epidemiology Unit, Cancer Research and Prevention Institute, ISPO, Florence, Italy

    Domenico Palli

  9. Cancer Registry and Histopathology Unit, “Civile, M.P.Arezzo” Hospital, ASP Ragusa, Italy

    Rosario Tumino

  10. Nutritional Epidemiology Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, Milan, Italy

    Sara Grioni

  11. Department of Epidemiology, German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke, Nuthetal, Germany

    Sven Knüppel

  12. Danish Cancer Society Research Center, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Anne Tjønneland & Anja Olsen

  13. Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark

    Kim Overvad

  14. Hellenic Health Foundation, 10-12 Tetrapoleos Street, 115 27, Athens, Greece

    Philippos Orfanos, Michail Katsoulis & Antonia Trichopoulou

  15. WHO Collaborating Center for Food and Nutrition Policies, Department of Hygiene, Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, University of Athens Medical School, 75 M. Asias Street, Goudi, 115 27, Athens, Greece

    Philippos Orfanos, Michail Katsoulis & Antonia Trichopoulou

  16. Public Health Directorate, Asturias, Spain

    Jose Ramón Quirós

  17. Navarre Public Health Institute, Pamplona, Spain

    Eva Ardanaz

  18. CIBER Epidemiology and Public Health CIBERESP, Barcelona, Spain

    Eva Ardanaz & José María Huerta

  19. Department of Epidemiology, Murcia Regional Health Council, Murcia, Spain

    José María Huerta

  20. Public Health Division of Gipuzkoa, Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain

    Pilar Amiano Etxezarreta

  21. Registro de Cáncer de Granada, Escuela Andaluza de Salud Pública, Granada, Spain

    María José Sánchez

  22. Cancer Epidemiology Unit, Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK

    Francesca Crowe

  23. Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, UK

    Kay-Tee Khaw

  24. MRC Epidemiology Unit, Institute of Metabolic Science, Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, UK

    Nicholas J. Wareham

  25. National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands

    Marga Ocke & Bas Bueno-de-Mesquita

  26. Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University Medical Centre, Utrecht, The Netherlands

    Bas Bueno-de-Mesquita

  27. Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands

    Petra H. M. Peeters

  28. Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease, Genetic Epidemiology, Department of Clinical Sciences in Malmö, Lund University, Lund, Sweden

    Ulrika Ericson

  29. Nutritional Epidemiology, Department of Clinical Sciences in Malmö, Lund University, Lund, Sweden

    Elisabet Wirfält

  30. Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden

    Göran Hallmans

  31. Department of Odontology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden

    Ingegerd Johansson

  32. Department of Community Medicine, University of Tromsø, Tromsø, Norway

    Dagrun Engeset

  33. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London, UK

    Valentina Gallo, Teresa Norat & Elio Riboli

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  1. Pietro Ferrari
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  2. Heinz Freisling
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  3. Eric J. Duell
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  7. Marie-Christine Boutron-Ruault
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  8. Laura Nailler
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  9. Silvia Polidoro
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  33. Elisabet Wirfält
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  34. Göran Hallmans
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  37. Geneviève Nicolas
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  38. Valentina Gallo
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  39. Teresa Norat
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  41. Nadia Slimani
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Pietro Ferrari.

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Ferrari, P., Freisling, H., Duell, E.J. et al. Challenges in estimating the validity of dietary acrylamide measurements. Eur J Nutr 52, 1503–1512 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-012-0457-7

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