The awareness about carcinogens being all around us in our environment has made most of us health-conscious to the extent that we do our best to avoid radioactive waves, cigarette fumes, chemicals and even harsh cleaners and detergents. However, these cancer-causing killers are also hidden in our food. Here are some items you need to delete from the menu because they can be lethal.

1. Microwave Popcorn. Perflouroctnoic Acid (PFOA), the same toxin that’s found in Teflon, is used in the lining of most microwave popcorn bags. Exposure to PFOA increases the risk of kidney, bladder, liver and pancreatic cancer.

2. Processed Meats. Don’t get taken in by the advertisements promoting it as part of a ‘healthy-protein breakfast’. Nothing could be further from the truth. The World Health Organization has issued a warning that processed meats have been proven to be a leading cause of cancer, so, to call them healthy is nothing short of ridiculous.

3. Refined Sugar. Typically made from genetically modified sugar-beets, this one’s a definite health hazard. Consuming refined sugar spikes up the insulin levels in your bloodstream, which, in consequence feeds cancerous cells. Whether you take sugar in your beverages, add it to desserts, or even enjoy it in tomato ketchup, it’s all harmful.

4. Aerated Drinks. The type of sugar added to soda drinks, and even most fruit juices, is fructose, which is seriously carcinogenic, as is the brown food colouring found in your favorite ‘cola’. Soda too, because of its acidic element, causes cancer cells in the body to multiply.

5. White Bread. The aesthetically pleasing whiteness of the bread is because of the refined flour that’s used for making it. The flour is bleached to give it the fine, white colour, but some of the bleaching chemicals are retained in the bread. When we eat white bread, the sugar-balance in our body is upset, increasing the production of insulin, which in turn encourages the growth of cancerous cells.