It all started with a chemical compound. Not a scary monster in a lab coat, I promise. The rumor centers on something called tallow amine, used in some non-stick sprays.
Back in the 1990s, a study said that if you inhale tallow amine in huge, industrial amounts, it might be linked to tumors in rat lungs. Not human lungs. Rat lungs. In a factory setting.
Now, does that mean a squirt of Pam in your kitchen poses the same risk? That’s a massive stretch. It’s like saying because a cannon can fire a watermelon, a pea shooter can do the same. No.
But what about the oil itself?
Cooking spray is mostly just oil, right? Every oil—even olive oil—can release harmful compounds when heated too high. That’s where real risk lives.
When you blast any oil past its “smoke point,” it creates things like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and aldehydes. Those are linked to cancer. But it’s the heat, not the spray.
So, the spray isn’t the villain. Your burnt-out smoke alarm is the real red flag here. Use the spray, but don’t let your pan turn into a chimney.
