Take a bag of popcorn fresh from the microwave, breathe deep from that wonderful buttery exhalation as you tear the bag open ... oh, wait. Don't do that. Better yet, butter it yourself and spare popcorn factory workers from the dangers of diacetyl, the chemical responsible for the aroma:
After working for 10 months at a St. Louis, Mo., flavoring company, 53-year-old Jerry Blaylock developed a life-threatening disease commonly called popcorn lung, which is linked to the chemical diacetyl. Now his once healthy lungs can hold just 45 percent of breathing capacity. [...]
Experts believe when heated in a factory setting, diacetyl produces a toxic and potentially lethal gas. David Michaels, a former assistant secretary of energy, has been studying the issue for the last four years.
"Workers who mix the chemical as a liquid or powder breathe in small amounts of this chemical and it just devastates their lungs," Michaels said.
The FDA has never studied diacetyl, but injured workers have won more than $100 million in popcorn lung lawsuits and the state of California is considering a bill to ban it.
Could Microwave Popcorn Be Toxic? [ABC News]
Image: Richard Miske*
