Fact Check: Is eating French Fries worse than smoking cigarettes?

A viral Instagram reel claims that eating French Fries is worse than smoking cigarettes. This claim by the user is Misleading.

Claim

In a viral Instagram reel, it is claimed that eating French Fries is worse than smoking cigarettes. In a reel by user rajshamani he is talking to dr_ravindersinghrao_tavr. Raj Shamani mentions that he read somewhere, "Eating French fries is more dangerous than smoking cigarettes." Dr. Rao responded, "We don't know in which oil the french fries have been prepared, how many times the oil has been reheated and every time oil is reheated every time it gets converted to trans fatty acid and goes to the heart." Additionally, the post warns that some carcinogenic aldehydes found in a serving of fries can be equivalent to those in 25 cigarettes.

The viral reel has 13.8 million views, 3,49,687 likes and 1 million shares. The reel can be accessed here.

Fact Check

The claim made by the Instagram user is Misleading and is exaggerated claim. The assertion that eating French fries is more harmful than smoking cigarettes lacks scientific support. While both can negatively impact health, their effects are not directly comparable. Further, the comparison may lead some to think that smoking is less harmful and is better than eating french fries. Additionally, the warning in the post that some carcinogenic aldehydes found in a serving of fries can be equivalent to those in 25 cigarettes is not supported by any scientific evidence or medical consensus.

What is a Cigarette?

As per the American Lung Association, Cigarettes contain about 600 ingredients, and burning them produces over 7,000 chemicals. At least 69 of these are carcinogens, while many others are toxic. Some of these chemicals are found in common consumer products, which carry warning labels, such as rat poison. However, tobacco smoke lacks such warnings. Examples of chemicals in tobacco smoke include acetone (nail polish remover), acetic acid (hair dye), ammonia (household cleaner), arsenic (rat poison), benzene (rubber cement and gasoline), butane (lighter fluid), cadmium (battery acid), carbon monoxide (car exhaust), formaldehyde (embalming fluid), hexamine (barbecue lighter fluid), lead (batteries), naphthalene (mothballs), methanol (rocket fuel), nicotine (insecticide), tar (road paving), and toluene (paint manufacturing).

FDA notes, "The basic components of most cigarettes are tobacco, chemical additives, a filter, and paper wrapping. The tobacco is burned and then the smoke is inhaled. People who smoke are exposed to a toxic mix of over 7,000 chemicals, including more than 70 that can cause cancer, when they inhale cigarette smoke."

Health Risks of Cigarette Smoking

Cigarette smoking is a significant public health issue. Smoking adversely impacts nearly every organ in the body and is a primary cause of various diseases, including cancer, heart disease, stroke, chronic lung conditions like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and type 2 diabetes. It also leads to harmful reproductive health effects and increases the risk of certain eye diseases and immune system disorders, such as rheumatoid arthritis. Importantly, quitting smoking reduces the risk of premature death and the development of these smoking-related conditions.

What are French Fries?

French fries are strips of potatoes that are deep-fried. Commercially available French fries are partially pre-fried and need to be fried or reheated before eating. Their shelf life varies based on storage method, whether refrigerated or frozen. For optimal quality, large, long, oval-shaped potatoes (over 50 mm) are typically preferred.

Is eating French Fries worse than smoking cigarettes?

Tobacco use is a global health crisis. As per WHO, Each year, over 8 million people die due to tobacco use, with most tobacco-related deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries, which are often targeted by aggressive tobacco industry marketing and interference. Tobacco is also harmful to non-smokers. Exposure to second-hand smoke contributes to serious health problems and is responsible for 1.2 million deaths annually.

Smoking is a highly dangerous habit with severe health consequences, even at minimal levels which emphasizes its links to life-threatening conditions. Harvard Medical School in an article said that Even one cigarette a day is too many. Smoking even one cigarette a day carries significant health consequences, namely a higher risk of heart attack and stroke.

Moreverover, the American Heart Association says, "Smoking cigarettes can kill you, but before you die, you could experience some pretty terrible diseases and health conditions from smoking like Lung Cancer, COPD, Heart Disease, Stroke, Asthma, etc."

Similarly, French fries consumption can also have health hazards. Regular consumption of French fries, particularly when fried in reheated oils, poses health hazards such as increased risks of obesity, heart disease, and potential exposure to harmful compounds like trans fats and acrylamide, which may contribute to higher mortality rates.

Trans fatty acids also known as trans fats are considered the most harmful, with more detrimental effects on human health than any other dietary component. WHO said, "Trans fat clogs arteries, increasing the risk of heart attacks and deaths."

American Heart Association noted "Trans fats raise your bad (LDL) cholesterol levels and lower your good (HDL) cholesterol levels. Eating trans fats increases your risk of developing heart disease and stroke. It’s also associated with a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes."

Studies have shown that extended heating of oils at elevated temperatures increases trans-fatty acid levels. A systematic review by Saiuj Bhat et. al. indicates that while heating edible oils to typical cooking temperatures has minimal impact on the generation of Trans Fatty Acids, prolonged heating at higher temperatures can lead to an increase in Trans Fatty Acid levels.

Similarly, a study published in Food Chemistry reported that heating and frying oil at high temperatures results in moderate increases in trans fat concentrations. On average, trans fat levels were found to rise by 3.67 g/100g after heating and by 3.57 g/100g after frying.

An article published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reported that frequent consumption of fried potatoes may be linked to a higher risk of mortality. The authors suggested that further research with larger sample sizes is needed to determine if overall potato consumption is related to an increased risk of mortality. This study doesn't suggest anything about consuming french fries is way more dangerous than smoking cigarettes

Acrylamide is present in certain foods. It can form when vegetables containing the amino acid asparagine, like potatoes, are cooked at high temperatures with certain sugars. Additionally, acrylamide is found in tobacco smoke. People are exposed to significantly more acrylamide from tobacco smoke compared to food. Smokers have blood levels of acrylamide exposure markers that are three to five times higher than those found in non-smokers.

Both smoking cigarettes and eating French fries pose health risks but the claim that eating french fries is worse than smoking cigarettes is misleading to the extent that it may portray that smoking cigarettes is better than eating french fries. Both of these practices have harmful effects on health. Smoking is directly linked to severe diseases like lung cancer, heart disease, and stroke, introducing highly toxic chemicals and high levels of acrylamide into the body, causing millions of deaths annually. French fries, especially when fried at high temperatures, contain trans fatty acids (TFAs) and acrylamide, which can raise the risk of heart disease and cancer over time. However, while frequent fried food consumption is harmful, smoking remains far more detrimental due to its potent, direct impact on health and higher mortality risk.

However, there is no scientific evidence that one is more harmful than the other 

What insights do experts offer on this claim?

Dr. Mrigakshi Aggarwal, MBBS, DNB - Respiratory Diseases, Pulmonologist, Sanjeevan Hospital, Delhi, added "While both French fries and smoking have significant health risks, smoking is one of the biggest No-Nos for Good health. It directly affects the respiratory system, leading to lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and other severe respiratory conditions. Smoking also contributes to heart disease and strokes, affecting nearly every organ in the body. On the other hand, French fries are linked to obesity and related diseases but lack the immediate, toxic impact of smoking. Smoking should not be promoted under any circumstances, given its well-documented and serious health hazards."

Our team spoke with Ms. Diksha Dayal, Head of Department & Senior Dietician, Department of Nutrition & Health, SHALBY Sanar International Hospitals, Gurugram about Health Risks Associated with Trans fatty Acids and she said, "Trans fatty acids increase the bad cholesterol which is LDL Cholesterol and decrease good cholesterol which is HDL in our body. So the combination of increased bad cholesterol and low good cholesterol can make the heart vessels go narrow and it increases the risk become hard. That is why it increases the risk of heart attacks in the younger generation."

While overeating French fries can impact health, smoking has even more documented adverse effects, and no scientific evidence or medical consensus suggests that consuming French fries is worse than smoking cigarettes. Additionally, there is no scientific evidence to support the warning made in the reel that some carcinogenic aldehydes found in a serving of fries can be equivalent to those in 25 cigarettes.

Medical Dialogues Final Take

There is no scientific evidence or medical consensus that was found comparing the impacts of eating French Fries and smoking cigarettes. While both smoking and consuming French fries carry health risks, smoking has substantially more documented and direct health hazards. It is responsible for millions of preventable deaths annually and is directly linked to serious illnesses like lung cancer, heart disease, and stroke. French fries do contain trans fats which pose potential long-term health risks.

Furthermore, there is no scientific backing for the claim that certain carcinogenic aldehydes in a serving of fries equate to those in 25 cigarettes, nor is there any medical consensus supporting the claim that eating French Fries is worse than smoking cigarettes. 

Hence, the claim by Instagram user is Misleading.