"As if the calorie count on a supersize serving of McDonald's French fries weren't scary enough, one of the big health stories last week was a report suggesting that eating any fried or baked starch could increase your risk of getting cancer. According to Swedish researchers, frying potatoes or other starchy foods triggers the formation of an organic molecule called acrylamide, which has been shown to cause cancer in lab rats."

By Christine Gorman

"The FDA has been strangely silent about acrylamide," CSPE Executive Director Michael F. Jacobson said. "It should be advising consumers to avoid or cut back on the most contaminated and least nutritious foods while more testing is done across the food supply. The FDA also should be intensively investigating ways of preventing the formation of this carcinogen."

1. Store your potatoes above 46 degrees Fahrenheit. At lower temperatures, fructose content in the potato rises sharply and that results in more acrylamideforming while frying or baking.

2. Soaking raw potato slices in water for 15–30 minutes before frying or roasting helps reduce acrylamide formation during cooking.

3. When frying potatoes, stop when they become golden, but not brown.