By David Blyweiss, M.D., Advanced Natural Wellness

June 19, 2012

• Grilled meat smells great, but should you eat them?
• Why your grill may be a cancer trap
• Summer grilling tips for a healthier cookout

Down here in South Florida we’re able to cook outdoors just about any time of the year.

And now that summer weather has made its ways to the northern states, the “official” grilling season has finally started for everyone in the U.S., no matter where you live.

Cookouts are always fun. I have patients and friends who pull out all the stops when it comes to a backyard barbecue. Ribs, chicken, smoked pork and fish, sausages, hot dogs, hamburgers…

Pasta salad, potato salad, cole slaw and corn on the cob…

Fresh watermelon, strawberries and mangoes…

But let’s be honest. It’s not the smell of watermelon or the lure of cole slaw that draws your attention.

It’s the flaming grill loaded with sizzling meat that seduces your taste buds. And I’ll be the first to admit: That scent is pretty irresistible.

However you’re going to hate it when I tell you what grilling can do to your meat.

You see, in order to get the crunchy and mouthwatering black edges on your ribs, steak and chicken it requires very high heat.

And while you might think higher temperatures will help rid your meat of things like salmonella and e coli, it may also increase your risk of certain types of cancer.

Here’s why…

Not long ago, researcher made a pretty groundbreaking discovery. They learned when fats and juices from your meats drip down into the hot coals on your grill it produces something called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs.)

These PAHs are cancer-causing chemicals. And they deposit themselves directly on your food, especially in those crunchy and delectable charred portions of meat and fat.

Another group of chemicals, heterocyclic amines (HCAs) form when meat, poultry and fish is cooked at high temperatures. The longer you cook the meats and the higher the temperature, the more HCAs are produced.

All of these chemicals are associated with a greater risk of colon, pancreatic and prostate cancer. They also increase the risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women.

But there are ways to reduce the formation of these chemicals and prevent your grill from becoming a cancer trap. I’ll tell you how to do that in just a moment.

First I want to tell you about one more barbecue favorite that may be adding to your cancer risk and sending you to an early grave…

No cookout would be complete without hot dogs. Some people even like to throw sausages, kielbasa and bratwurst on the grill. But these processed meats are some of the worst foods for your health.

A new study involving almost a half million people found those who eat the most processed meat increase their risk of dying from things like cardiovascular disease and cancer by 44%. That’s almost double the risk!

Previous research shows you are also 38% more likely to become diabetic and have a 42% higher risk of heart disease if you eat processed meat.

Now before you write off cookouts altogether, let’s look at several precautions you can take when having a barbecue, and still enjoy that delicious charcoal taste…

It’s not hard to turn traditional cookout foods into a healthy treat for everyone. There are more creative ways to cook on a grill than you might realize. In fact, I have a number of ways to take your summer barbecue to an entirely new level.

My biggest recommendation is only to have 13% of your meal made up of meat. When I refer to meat, I am including red meat, poultry and fish in that 13%. So that might also be a big change for you. Replace most of your meat with fresh in-season vegetables. They are tasty and healthier for you.

For cooking the meat you include, use the following tasty tips:

1. Turn your cookout into a “fish-fest.” Cooking fish and shellfish don’t take as much time to cook as red meat. And you can grill them up at a much lower heat. As a result, they will produce fewer cancer-causing chemicals.
2. Try shaking things up with grilled shish-ka-bobs. When you cut your meats into smaller chunks they cook much faster. So fewer chemicals are released. Include onions, mushrooms, tomatoes and green peppers for a tasty meal.
3. Whether it’s ribs or burgers, select lean cuts of grass-fed meat for the grill. Today you can even buy uncured hot dogs made from grass-fed beef – without any added sugars, meat by-products, nitrites or nitrates.
4. If possible, cook your meats on a gas grill. It’s much easier to control the heat and avoid the formation of deadly chemicals. Use a low heat and cook your meats until they are medium to medium-well.
5. If you are using charcoal, don’t spread them evenly on the bottom. Shove the coals to one side of the grill and place your meats on the other side. This will prevent fat from dripping directly onto the fire and producing PAH.
6. Certain spices can reduce HCA levels by 40 percent when applied to beef before cooking. Research shows fingerrot (Chinese ginger,) rosemary and turmeric have the highest activity in reducing HCAs. However, rosemary appears to be the most effective.
7. Other research shows beef marinated in a mixture of garlic, onion and lemon juice can reduce HCAs by about 70% during cooking. Just create a mixture of onion, garlic and lemon juice. You can also use red wine, virgin olive oil, rosemary and other spices to reduce production of HCA in both beef and chicken.
8. Cooking your meats in foil packets can help preserve the juices and prevent them from dropping onto the hot coals and forming PAH. When cooked this way, foods like ribs and chicken will be so tender it literally falls off the bone.

Summertime grilling is a great way to have some fun time with your friends and family. And it doesn’t take much to make it a healthy event. So light up the grill and get cooking – the right way!

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Resources:

http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/cooked-meats last accessed 04/28/2013.

Steck SE, Gaudet MM, Eng SM, Britton JA, Teitelbaum SL, Neugut AI, Santella RM, Gammon MD. Cooked meat and risk of breast cancer–lifetime versus recent dietary intake. Epidemiology. 2007 May;18(3):373-82.

Rohrmann S, Overvad K, Bueno-de-Mesquita HB, et al. Meat consumption and mortality – results from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. BMC Med. 2013 Mar 7;11:63.

Vang A, Singh PN, Lee JW, Haddad EH, Brinegar CH. Meats, processed meats, obesity, weight gain and occurrence of diabetes among adults: findings from Adventist Health Studies. Ann Nutr Metab. 2008;52(2):96-104. Epub 2008 Mar 18.

Micha R, Wallace SK, Mozaffarian D. Red and processed meat consumption and risk of incident coronary heart disease, stroke, and diabetes mellitus: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Circulation. 2010 Jun 1;121(21):2271-83. Epub 2010 May 17.

University of Arkansas, Food Safety Consortium (2010, May 18). Spicing the meat also cuts the cancer risk, research suggests. ScienceDaily. Retrieved April 28, 2013, from http://www.sciencedaily.com¬ /releases/2010/05/100518105801.htm

Gibis M. Effect of oil marinades with garlic, onion, and lemon juice on the formation of heterocyclic aromatic amines in fried beef patties. J Agric Food Chem. 2007;55(25):10240-10247.