A woman said that she swapped out her previous air fryer for a glass one, after the one she had before tested positive for lead.
CGG (@ccgisel113) penned that despite not being exactly fiscally gifted she ultimately decided to opt for the glass air fryer because she thought it would be the best choice for her family’s health.
There were others, too, who expressed concern about air fryers potentially exposing users to harmful toxins. However, there seem to be varying opinions online as to whether or not it’s as large of a threat as some say it is.
“When air [fryer] tested positive for lead but I used it every single day. Decided to try this glass air frier,” the text overlay reads. “So far so good. Are we poor? Yes. idc what I have to do, I will do it for my kids.”
The creator shows off the golden brown crispiness of what looks like chicken nuggets baking in the glass air fryer.
“I love watching the food cook,” she writes in a caption, which highlights yet another benefit to having a glass air fryer.
@ccgissel113 I love watching the food cook😍 @Fritaire #fyp ♬ Im In Love Im Obsessed Rihanna x Casa Di Remix – CasaDi
Other folks have complained, and gone viral, for claiming that they tested their air fryers for lead. One Ninja customer sparked a TikTok debate on the subject. Several people responded and speculated that the lead wasn’t from the air fryer, but that the food itself was the source of lead.
One Redditor who posted to the r/airfryer sub asked the community if they should be worried about the p65 lead and BPA warning sticker attached. Several folks who responded stated that these types of cautionary messages are included on pretty much any and every electronic device: “Literally everything made of plastic with electronics will have that same P65 warning. The shell has BPA as a plasticizer and the circuit boards have lead. Neither of which come into direct contact with your food since the inner chamber is made entirely of metal.”
Someone else wrote, “And since that’s a California sticker, it’s probably nothing to worry about. Their required chemical levels for warning labels are incredibly low compared to pretty much the rest of the world, usually well below the threshold for harm. As long as you’re not licking the electronics in it and you don’t stand there for several minutes breathing in smoke if it catches fire, you’ll be fine.”
Are air fryers harmful?
However, there were a couple of users who said the “inner side walls” of their respective air fryers had tested positive for lead as well—OP said that the brand of fryer they purchased was a Dreo.
Concerns surrounding the potential “toxicity” of air fryers have sparked numerous online conversations. Home and Gardens even penned an article of vetted air fryer models recommending their “safest tested options” for consumers. According to the outlet, while the process of air frying food itself isn’t a problem, there are certain chemicals present in some of the materials used in specific air frying brands that, when damaged, or chipped, could potentially expose users’ foods to harmful toxins.
The outlet suggests staying away from air frying brands that utilize “non-stick chemicals” and encouraging people who are worried about this toxic chemical that they should be using only stainless steel and ceramic in their air fryers.
The same piece even stated that depending on “how hot” air fryers get “can cause potentially carcinogenic chemicals to form,” which is “why almost all air fryers have Prop 65 warnings in California.” The outlet went on to say that these warnings don’t necessarily mean that air fryers are toxic: “These chemicals, acrylamides, are a risk whenever you fry or toast above 338°F. That’s pretty much any time you fry or toast anything.”
The Ninja Max XL and the Instant Pot Duo Crisp with Ultimate Lid were named by the outlet as its favorite stainless steel and ceramic air fryers.
Other users who responded to the TikToker’s video stated that they, too, were concerned with chemicals in their air fryers, writing that they went and put a glass air fryer, which is purportedly healthier and safer, on an online wish list: “We just added a glass air fryer to our Amazon wish list for this exact reason. Threw out the other one!”
One person lamented the fact that there seems to be a problem with nearly every human invention ever: “How are we even supposed to stay safe? Literally every day I hear a new normal things I’ve been using has poison in it.”
Several were all in favor of tossing out their older air fryers and swapping them out with safer options: “I ditched my old one and got one of the only fully stainless steel air fryers out there. Was definitely worth the money.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to CGG via TikTok comment for further information.
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