Microwave Popcorn Lung

It's a known fact that workers in factories that produce microwaveable are prone to contracting bronchiolitis obliterans, also known as popcorn lung.

Seriously.

Popcorn lung is a lung disease caused by exposure to diacetyl, the chemical used for artificial butter flavoring. Over the last five years, popcorn makers like ConAgra Foods, General Mills, and the American Pop Corn Company have paid more than $100,000,000 in lawsuits filed by employees who have contracted popcorn lung.

While diacetyl is found naturally in products like milk, cheese, and butter, it becomes a vapor when heated. If inhaled for extended periods of time, it can lead to swelling and scarring in the lungs's airways.

So how do you know if you've been breathing in too many toxic popcorn fumes? Inhale deeply. No problems? Good. Now exhale. If you find the process of exhaling difficult, you might have popcorn lung, or someone might be trying to smother you with a pillow.

So factory workers who are exposed to diacetyl on a daily basis are at risk. What about consumers?

Unless you are consuming a bag or two of microwaveable popcorn a day, you should be safe. The risk comes from inhaling the fumes, so don't open the bag and take a big whiff. Keep it under a vent or in a well-ventilated area. However, there is only one documented case of popcorn lung by a consumer, so don't panic just yet.

Meet Wayne Watson.

Wayne was a chronic user. He ate several bags of microwaveable popcorn a day. "I am popcorn," were his words. He'd been eating that much for a decade. As it is with most foods we love, the smell was a large part of his enjoyment. He'd open the bag, and inhale both the comforting fragrance of popcorn and the deadly fumes of diacetyl. Ah, what sweet bliss.

Wayne Watson first noticed a change in his lung capacity several years ago during choir rehearsals when he wasn't able to hold his notes like he had once been able. He wasn't a smoker and had made no changes to his lifestyle, so he saw a doctor about it. He got scans and biopsies, he took inhalers and steroids, all to no affect. Gradually, his lung capacity continued to diminish.

It wasn't until he saw a a pulmonary specialist at Denver’s National Jewish Medical and Research Center that the astute doctor noticed similarities between Wayne's symptoms and popcorn lung.

Further investigation revealed that the levels of diacetyl in Wayne's home were equal to a microwave popcorn production factory.

Wayne Watson has since kicked the habit, and his lung capacity has greatly improved.

Coincidence? ConAgra seems to think so. The makers of Orville Redenbacher and Act II popcorn made this statement:

“We are fully confident that microwave popcorn is safe for consumers to prepare and eat. However, in order to eliminate even the perception of risk for consumers and to provide the safest possible work environment for employees who handle large quantities of diacetyl, we plan to eliminate the use of added diacetyl in our microwave popcorn products within a year."

General Mills and the American Pop Corn Company are also working on new recipes sans diacetyl.

In the meantime, enjoy your microwaveable popcorn of death.