Common Carcinogens

Each day, you encounter many carcinogens which can be described as "... a cancer-causing agent (carcinos means "cancer"; gennan means "to produce")" (Hamilton, Whitney, and Sizer 324-348). Carcinogens cause a mutation to occur in a cell's DNA and if this occurs in one of the genes that control mitosis, the cell will become cancerous and harmful to the body. There are many things that carcinogens may exist in such as, ciggarettes, various foods and viruses. Three main carcinogens which are encountered on a daily basis by most people include, Benzopyrene which is in cigarettes and Aflatoxin B1 which may be in foods such as grain products both of which are displayed in the menu to the right.