Can polyacrylamide be a thickener in food production?

PAM has good viscosity and thickening effect. Can it be thickened in food production?

To answer this question, we must start with the toxicity of PAM. PAM itself is basically non-toxic. After it enters the human body, most of it is excreted in the short term and is rarely absorbed by the human body. However, the raw material acrylamide for producing the product is toxic, and it is difficult to completely convert in the production. Acrylamide is a neurotoxic agent that has a damaging effect on the nervous system. After poisoning, it shows symptoms such as weakness of the body and movement disorders. Therefore, the health departments of various countries have stipulated that the amount of residual acrylamide in PAM in industry should be controlled at 0.5%---0.05%. The residual amount of acrylamide in water treatment should be controlled below 0.2%. If it is used in drinking water, the residual amount of acrylamide needs to be less than 0.05%, and the dosage should be controlled. The content of water in the treated water will be less than 0.25ug/ L.

From the above analysis, we know that although PAM is not toxic, the residue is indeed very toxic and has serious damage to the human body. However, in production, if the reaction conditions can be strictly controlled, the residue of PAM is controlled to be 0.05% or less, and the amount of use is strictly controlled, PAM is also acceptable as a food thickener.