Is it a commonly known thing that overcooking potatoes and white foods is a carcinogenic?

[30hourschildcare]

I was cooking potatoes and it said to not go over the time or the cooking temperature.
I was curious as to why so I looked it up.

I asked my DP and my friends and none of them knew this.

Also the amount of browned potatoes and other foods on the list I have eaten, not to mention toast, Has concerned me.

Can anyone give me some more info on this without freaking me out?

These things increase the risk of cancer but if that risk is relatively low then the increase will also be low. For example, if the risk of getting cancer from a bacon butty is 1 in a million, an increase in risk to 1 in 999,999 is still a risk worth taking. It would have to increase the risk by an absolutely huge amount to justify worrying about.

I didn't know this was a thing. I always thought that burned (as in properly charred to blackness) meat was a huge source of carcinogens.
It all reads like a Daily Mail headline anyway. That rag says everything causes cancer. With half of people getting it in their lifetime, I guess they are right.

My Nan used to say "a bit of charcoal is good for your digestion", usually when serving something er... slightly overcooked (but she loved burnt food anyway)

Her 2 big things were "roughage" and "you should drink 4 pints of water a day" She died at 90 in the 1980s so didn't live to see the emphasise on fibre and hydration.

Sorry for digression OP, don't think the odd slightly charred thing will hurt.

Yes Acrylamides

We got a update at work to manage the risk (food production) no mention of it since

Bacon and other smoked/cured goods react with stomach acid to form nitrosomines, which are carcinogenic. However, the nitrites added prevent botulism which kills.

You pays your money and you takes your choice.

yeah, don't dare get very old. The surest bet for getting cancer is to get very old. Avoid at all costs. ;-)

Crisps are also apparently full of acrylamides.

Cancer Research debunks this theory:
www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-cancer/cancer-myths/can-eating-burnt-foods-cause-cancer

Yes, Dr Michael Greger has an article on this. Always pick off any dark/burnt bits.