stories:
Nagging Question
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Are the Burnt Bits of Veggies Carcinogenic?We thought grilling was the healthy option |
When meat is cooked using high heat, carcinogenic compounds called heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are formed. But the carcinogens are more about the meat than the method of cooking.
The formation of HCAs is “not a problem in vegetables,” says Dee Sandquist, who is a registered dietitian and a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association. A fact sheet put out by the National Cancer Institute explains that “HCAs form when amino acids (the building blocks of proteins) and creatine (a chemical found in muscles) react at high cooking temperatures.” Vegetables don’t contain creatine, so they don’t produce HCAs.
PAHs are formed only when you grill over an open flame and meat fat drips onto the flames, says Krista L. Haynes, staff dietitian for the Cancer Project, a nonprofit organization that researches the links between nutrition and cancer. Carcinogens then rise in the smoke and adhere to the surface of the food. Increased temperature and longer cooking times lead to higher levels of both PAHs and HCAs.
Only a minimal number of PAHs are formed when vegetable-based fat is burned, says Haynes, and “the amount [of oil] used at home wouldn’t produce significant levels.”
thanks for the info--had been wondering about charring on veggies, what with the current craze for high heat roasting.
There is currently a craze for high heat roasting? It's good to know that only most foods can possibly give me cancer.
But doesn't frying potatoes supposedly create some other carcinogen?
We are far too aware of the impact of our food.
We knew someone who had excersized regularly, eaten properly most of their life, never smoked, had a bit of wine on ocassion, yet, she went home to take a nap, and died in her sleep in the afternoon, of heart failure. And she had never had heart or circulatory problems in her life.
We're just not sure anymore if the worry about what we eat or don't eat is worth the effort. We just make sure we don't eat in excess.
So does this mean pittsburgh style / black & bleu will eventually give me cancer - more so than cooking to med-rare over normal heat?? (yes, I understand *everything* will eventually give me cancer.) I'm just wondering, is the risk higher with charred meat? Is there really a risk, or is it something "cooked up" by these foundations so they can plead their case for additional funding?
How many orders of burnt ends can I get at a BBQ joint before I croak. 4? 5?
No one seems to mention benzopyrenes which are created when grilling just about anything, vegetable or animal in nature. They are carcinogenic, however, I'll take my chances and enjoy grilling.
I just cooked some Italian squash but accidentally let the water evaporate under the steamer. The pan was blackened and had just started smoking before I rescued it. I ate the squash anyway but it had a bad aftertaste. Am I going to die?