As people grow more health conscious, their cooking habits are shifting too. The craving for fried and oily food has not gone away, but the urge to make it with far less oil has, and that is exactly where the air fryer has stepped in. Because it uses almost no oil, the device has caught on quickly in middle class households. Yet that very popularity has triggered a worrying question: is using an air fryer pushing up the risk of cancer? To clear the confusion, Dr. Tarang Krishna, Director of Cancer Healer Center, laid out the facts in a video on his YouTube channel.
How an Air Fryer Actually Works
An air fryer is essentially a mini convection oven. It circulates hot air rapidly and spreads it evenly all around the food, which is what gives dishes that crisp, well cooked finish. According to the doctor, there is no radiation involved and no electromagnetic waves either, it simply works on heat. The standout point is that compared with a deep fryer, it uses less than 80 percent of the oil.
Is the Food Cooked in It Safe
Dr. Tarang Krishna is clear that food cooked in an air fryer is safe, because it emits no radiation and needs no oil during cooking. Less oil simply means fewer calories, and fewer calories means a lower chance of obesity. Since obesity itself is the root of several serious illnesses, food made in an air fryer can in a way work in your favour.
So Where Did the Cancer Scare Come From
If the food is safe, what fuelled the cancer rumour in the first place? The answer lies in a chemical called acrylamide. When starchy foods such as potatoes, bread or chips are cooked at very high temperatures, a chemical reaction takes place and acrylamide forms during that process. In animal studies conducted by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, acrylamide has been classed as a cancer causing factor. But there is an important detail to grasp here: in humans, no firm proof has yet linked dietary acrylamide to cancer. In 2024, a study of more than one lakh people on air fryers also found no cancer risk among them.
Then What Should You Be Careful About
The danger lies not in the air fryer itself but in cooking food the wrong way. Acrylamide only begins to form when food is cooked for far too long, and that is what proves harmful to health. So the doctor advises that whatever you make in an air fryer, never over cook it and never let it brown more than necessary, otherwise the benefits can turn into harm.
