Effects of fried potato chip supplementation on mouse pregnancy and fetal development

Objective: Acrylamide (ACR), a proven rodent carcinogen, is present at significantly high quantities in commonly consumed foods such as potato chips, raising a health concern worldwide. Methods: The effects of ACR and fried potato chips (FPC) on pregnant mice and their offspring before and after birth were investigated and compared. Results: In the pregnant mice, similar histologic abnormalities were found in various tissues for ACR intoxication and FPC supplementation. Drastic alterations were mainly seen in the liver, kidney, heart muscle, and epiphyseal cartilage of experimental dams. ACR and FPC increased the rate of abortion and neonatal mortality and decreased the total number, body weight, size, and crown-rump length of the offspring before and after birth. Interestingly, however, higher rates of congenital malformations were observed in the FPC-treated group. Although ossification of axial and appendicular bones was markedly retarded during fetal development, some ossified bones were missing in newly born offspring of treated groups. Furthermore, the incidence of missing ossification centers was higher in the FPC-treated than in the ACR-treated neonates. Conclusion: These results suggest that FPC can cause hazardous health effects and warrant a systematic study on the health effects of consumption of FPC and French fries in the general population. © 2011 Elsevier Inc.