According to the international cancer research organization, there are about 100 kinds of human carcinogens, including some microbial infections. Some of them are closely related to our home environment, which deserve our attention and precautions.

First of all, we should pay attention to cooking fumes. Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) is associated with people inhaling secondhand smoke, kitchen fumes, burnt and charred food, etc. There are many kinds of these chemicals, mainly represented by benzopyrene. The organs where cancer develops caused by PAH differ according to the route of contact and exposure. PAH inhaled through the respiratory tract, such as smoking, can lead to lung, bladder, kidney and pancreatic cancer. Skin contact might trigger skin cancer.

Taiwan has a warm and humid climate, and some grains are prone to mold. Grains such as corn, rice, and peanuts are susceptible to the aspergillus that produces aflatoxins. Aflatoxins are a group of chemicals that can cause liver damage and have been linked to liver cancer.

Newly decorated houses or new furniture often smell of pungent chemicals, most of which are formaldehyde. Its aqueous solution, commonly known as formalin, has the functions of antisepsis, disinfection and bleaching. Since formaldehyde has carcinogenicity, generally indoor formaldehyde concentration is not high. If you can open all windows for ventilation for a few days after the house is redecorated, it can obviously reduce indoor formaldehyde levels.

Nitrate is another subject that is common. In daily life, nitrate may come from vegetables, cured meat, salted fish, preserved meat or contaminated drinking water. Nitrate can be reduced to nitrite in humans’ gastrointestinal tract. Nitrite can combine with secondary amines, amides, or carbamates in foods to form nitroso, a carcinogen. For example, squid contains high levels of dimethylamine, trimethylamine and trimethylamine oxide, which may cause cancer due to its interaction with nitrite.

There are too many other chemicals that can cause cancer to go into detail, like the dioxin, recognized as the poison of the century, which can be linked to cancer found in many organs.