Ms. Wu recently felt uncomfortable with her stomach and was shocked when she went to the hospital and found out she had stomach cancer. To make matters worse, her husband and daughter also started experiencing the same symptoms. What could be the reason behind this?
In my conversation with Ms. Wu, I learned that the whole family enjoys eating ferns, and it suddenly dawned on the doctor.
【Can Ferns Actually Cause Cancer?】
Little did they know that consuming too much fern can be dangerous. Ferns contain a carcinogenic substance called "fern glycoside," and if not cooked properly or consumed over a long period of time, it can increase the risk of stomach cancer, esophageal cancer, and breast cancer.
Experts from the Department of Pharmacology at Guiyang Medical College, including Huang Nenghui, who conducted research on the carcinogenic effects of ferns, pointed out in their study "Experimental Study on the Carcinogenic Effects of Ferns" that after feeding rats with fresh sweet fern, bitter fern, processed sweet fern, and processed bitter fern powder for 7 months, 6 rats (33.5%), 3 rats (18.75%), 2 rats (12.5%), and 1 rat (6.25%) respectively developed intestinal adenomas. Additionally, one rat each from the fresh sweet fern and processed bitter fern groups developed breast tumors. Furthermore, when the above four types of ferns were mashed and fed to mice with Ehrlich ascites solid tumors for 10 days, the results showed that the tumor mass increased, with weight gains of 30.27%, 11.01%, 4.59%, and 1.83% respectively, indicating the carcinogenic and tumor-promoting effects of ferns.
Dr. Yun Wuxin pointed out in his article that, in general, the conclusion that "ferns cause cancer" is supported by solid scientific evidence. "If a synthetically produced substance or processed food has such a bad reputation - especially in terms of carcinogenicity - it would definitely be condemned and eliminated. However, ferns are an 'ancient, all-natural green food,' so people's tolerance and indulgence towards it are beyond limits."
【Ways to Cook Ferns】
1. Stir-fried Fern with Chicken
Ingredients:
200g fern, 100g chicken breast, 150g cornstarch, salt, monosodium glutamate, cooking wine, soy sauce, shredded green onion, shredded ginger, 500g salad oil (approximately 50g consumed).
Method:
(1) Blanch the ferns in boiling water, soak them in water for 30 minutes, then cut them into 2cm long sections.
(2) Cut the chicken into shreds, marinate it with salt, monosodium glutamate, and cornstarch. Heat the salad oil in a wok until it is 70% hot, then slide the chicken shreds in and stir-fry until cooked. Drain the oil and set aside.
(3) Heat the wok again, add a small amount of salad oil, add green onion, ginger, cooking wine, and soy sauce to stir-fry. Add the chicken shreds and ferns, stir-fry for a moment, and it's ready to serve.
2. Spicy and Sour Fern
Ingredients:
Fern, salted meat, ginger, garlic, dried chili, vinegar, soy sauce, salt, sugar, chicken essence.
Method:
(1) Wash the ferns, blanch them in boiling water, then cool them in cold water and cut them into suitable sections.
(2) Shred the ginger, slice the garlic, shred the dried chili, and shred the salted meat.
(3) Heat the wok and add the salted meat to stir-fry until the meat shreds turn golden.
(4) Add the shredded ginger, garlic, and dried chili to stir-fry until fragrant. Add the ferns and stir-fry over high heat for a moment.
(5) Reduce the heat and add vinegar, soy sauce (15ml), salt, sugar, and chicken essence.
(6) Stir-fry over high heat until well mixed, then turn off the heat.
【Precautions When Eating Ferns】
1. Generally, fresh ferns should be treated with wood ash or alkaline water. However, this treatment only reduces the amount of fern glycoside but does not eliminate it.
2. Ferns have a cooling nature, so they are not suitable for those with weak spleen and coldness. It is also not advisable for ordinary people to eat too much fern to avoid diarrhea.
3. When consuming ferns, remove the curled fern heads, wipe off the soft fine hairs, and soak them in wood ash water for at least 3 hours before cooking.
4. There are roughly three ways to cook ferns: fresh, dried, or soaked and then cooked. Ferns should not be eaten with soybeans, as soybeans are rich in vitamin B1, while ferns contain vitamin B1 decomposing enzymes, so they are not suitable to be eaten together.
