"When proteins or amino acids are heated in the presence of carbohydrates, what is called a ‘browning reaction’ takes place." It occurs "in a variety of common foods, including toasted bread, dried fruits, gravy mixes, beef stew, franks with beans, etc." Carmelization of sugar is another type of browning reaction. These reactions are responsible for the characteristic flavors, aromas, and brown color of many cooked foods.

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". . . a ‘browning reaction’ takes place. . . in a variety of common foods, including toasted bread, dried fruits, gravy mixes, beef stew, franks with beans, etc."

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"Nutritional studies of browning reactions have been conducted by researchers at the University of Rhode Island. They have discovered, as have others, that there is a substantial and rapid decrease in the nutritive value of foods that undergo the browning reaction. Rats fed a diet high in browning components showed evidence of cumulative toxic effects, particularly liver damage. (These authors, by the way, do not imply that cooking in general is harmful; indeed, they stress that it has many important nutritional and even anti-toxic benefits.)"

* Tung-Ching Lee, S. J. Pintauro, and C. O. Chichester, "Nutritional and Toxicologic Effects of Nonenzymatic Maillard Browning", Diabetes, June, 1982, Vol. 31, Supplement 3, pp. 37-46, summarized in Longevity Letter, March 1984, pp. 5-6.