Why this Kolaveri against Kerala porotta?

The anti-porotta campaign is back — this time, with a new allegation that it is high on cancer causing agents!

For over a year now, the Kerala porotta, which has been a hot favourite among true blue Malayalis, was under the scanner, thanks to campaigns on its ill effects. After a series of attacks, the latest allegation against the Kerala porotta is that it is high on cancer causing agents.
Blame it on alloxan
Jacob Vadakkanchery, who runs a nature food restaurant in Kochi and has been an advocate of naturopathy himself, ensures that the last item that would find a place in his restaurant's menu is the Kerala porotta. "Maida is a useless byproduct that is obtained after the extraction of wheat and is devoid of nutrients or bran. Besides, it is rich in a harmful chemical called alloxan, which is rampantly used in laboratory animals like mice to induce diabetics during the testing of anti-diabetic medication. In human beings, alloxan triggers kidney ailments, heart and liver problems and stomach disorders," he says, adding, "Yet, the porotta continues to lure a majority of the Kerala population."
Giving in to temptation
True enough, there's no denying that the popularity of the porotta cuts across all age groups. There's always this temptation for the forbidden fruit — perhaps why even people who are aware of the so-called health hazards the porotta threatens to cause decide to take an occasional bite into the bread. As Arathy Nair, a student of Mohandas College of Engineering and Technology, Trivandrum, would tell you, "The porotta is a hot favourite in our college canteen. Besides its yum element, it's filling enough that hunger pangs won't trouble you when you're engrossed in work." Prod her if she is aware of the so-called ill effects of the porotta and Arathy says, "Yes. So I'm careful enough not to gorge on it every day."
Porotta losing out to appam?
Suvarnan Sivaram, F&B Manager of a hotel in Kochi, agrees, saying, "A majority of porotta lovers are usually the young crowd. The older people, who are more concerned about their health than the youngsters, generally avoid it. However, though it features on our menu, of late, it's not as fast moving an item as the roti or appam." The porotta began losing its longstanding lure when campaigns throwing light on its ill-effects on one's health struck a chord among health conscious Malayalis, who, in turn, gave up on their love for the porotta... well, at least for a while. While the porotta resurfaced in its 'healthier' wheat avatar to appease the health freaks and win back the quitters, the latest allegation has put gourmets in a quandary yet again.
Toxic load
While Jacob agrees he might not have data to justify his findings, he insists, "Having food high on maida for days on end triggers constipation, doesn't it? That's one sign of how your body is rejecting it. Cancer is not caused just because of the uncontrollable multiplication of cells in the body; undigested food like those made of maida, cause a high toxic load in the body and causes a number of ailments — cancer the most rampant among them."
Believe it or not...
Jacob also suggests a simple experiment to prove his finding. "Try putting a porotta in a glassful of water for two hours and you can see how it dissipates into a sticky lump. This is what happens when we eat porotta — it is difficult to be digested and sticks to the internal lining of the digestive system, setting the ground for the onset of cancer."
Oncologist Dr Arun Warrier says that "allegations remain mere observations" unless there is concrete evidence and data to support the same. "Years ago, there was this story doing the rounds that Thrissur had the maximum number of cancer patients because of its people's love for beef. However, to date, there is no authentic data to support the claim."