The Keys To More Healthy Barbecuing

Barbecuing meat the wrong way can cause you to ingest cancer-causing chemicals, but there are ways of enjoying your summer grilling that will greatly reduce these potentially hazardous chemicals.

In general, avoid barbecue sauces made with tomato and/or sugars. They will double and sometimes triple your ingestion of toxic chemicals after just 15 minutes of cooking.

Fresh vegetables and salads are high in antioxidants and phytochemicals, which can help to counterbalance the damaging effects of grilling. Eating plenty of these veggies and salads will also fill you up and reduce the amount of meat that you may eat.

What Are These Hazardous Chemicals?

When you are cooking vegetables, fruit, meat or fish, chemical reactions occur during any cooking process. Unfortunately, barbecuing can cause chemical changes to foods that may produce carcinogens.

There are three classifications of dangerous chemicals that can potentially be produced during the grilling process. They are heterocyclic amines (HCAs), advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). We will go over each of them and how to minimize their production during barbecuing.

Heterocyclic Amines (HCAs)

These chemicals are formed in meat when cooked at high temperatures. Even cooking at high temperatures over the stove can cause their formation.. HCAs are potentially mutagenic, which means that they can alter DNA. HCAs are not found in appreciable amounts in other cooked foods, other than meat that is cooked at high temperatures. Once you eat the meat, the HCAs are metabolized in your body by specific enzymes, which can vary from person to person. This is why eating meat high in HCAs, may be much worse for certain people over others.

The amount of HCAs can be dependent on the type of meat, how well-done it is cooked and the temperature used to cook the meat. For example, well-done meat has 350% of the HCAs as compared to medium-rare meat. Pork has more HCAs than beef or chicken and higher cooking temperatures will produce more HCAs.

There have been more than 10 different HCAs identified from cooking meat and fish. When HCAs have been fed to rodents, they developed cancer in the colon, breast and prostate.

Reducing HCAs

Various ingredients that can be but in your burgers, rub or marinade, can help to flavor your food and also reduce the amount of HCAs and AGEs produced when grilling. They are; thyme, olive oil, mustard, cloves, apples, apple cider vinegar, cinnamon, oregano, black pepper, paprika, ginger, cherries, garlic, onions and rosemary. Acidic marinades also will reduce the amount of HCAs produced when cooking. A mixture of one part lemon juice to two parts onion and garlic, was found to reduce the production of HCAs with grilling by up to 70%.

Flipping the meat frequently, cooking at a lower temperatures and cooking the meat using indirect heat on the top rack, will reduce HCAs.

Using wood grilling planks that are soaked in water can significantly reduce HCAs.

Cutting off any burned parts or charred meat before eating, will also reduce HCAs.

Advanced Glycation End Products (AGEs)

AGEs, also known as glycotoxins, are present in your body and in the meat that you eat. These are highly oxidizing compounds that are linked to increased inflammation and oxidative stress in your body. Excess consumption of AGEs have been associated with diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Dry heat from grilling or broiling, may increase the formation of AGEs between 10- to 100 more than uncooked foods. Animal meat is high in AGEs.

In general, barbecuing, grilling, broiling, frying and searing foods, will increase the formation of AGEs in the meat that you eat.

Studies have found mice that ate diets rich in AGEs suffered from kidney disease, diabetes, atherosclerosis and slow wound healing. Mice fed diets low in AGEs, experienced a significantly reduced risk of the same health issues.

Your body does not get rid of or digest the end products of AGEs easily. Instead, they are stored in your organs, and over time cause damage.

Reducing AGEs

Researchers found a reduction in the formation of new AGEs from cooking with moist heat, using shorter cooking times, cooking at lower temperatures and marinating the meat using acidic ingredients, such as vinegar or lemon juice.

Fats have a low amount of AGEs per serving as compared to muscle meats, such as steak, chicken and frankfurters. Lamb and eggs have relatively less AGEs.

Flipping the meat frequently, cooking at a lower temperatures and cooking the meat using indirect heat on the top rack, will reduce AGEs.

Using wood grilling planks that are soaked in water can significantly reduce AGEs.

Cutting off any burned parts or charred meat before eating, will also reduce AGEs..

Above I mentioned the various ingredients that can be but in your burgers, rub or marinade that can help to not only flavor your food, but to also reduce the amount of HCAs and AGEs produced when grilling.

They are; thyme, olive oil, mustard, cloves, apples, apple cider vinegar, cinnamon, oregano, black pepper, paprika, ginger, cherries, garlic, onions and rosemary.

Precooking in the oven, reduces your cooking time on the grill that the food may producing AGEs.

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs)

PAHs don't originate in the meat, but rather from the wood, gas or coal that you use for the fire. They are formed when fat from the meat drips and creates smoke. The PAHs are in the smoke. They are deposited back on the food as it is cooking and being bathed in the smoke.

PAHs can be also absorbed into your body through eating them, breathing them in and being in contact with your skin. Cancers of the skin, liver and stomach have been seen in laboratory animals from exposure to PAHs. They also have developed leukemia and cancers of the digestive tract and lungs.

When the PAHs come in contact with the nitrogen from the meat you're cooking, nitrated PAHs (NPAHs) are formed, which are even more carcinogenic.

Reducing PAHs

Since when fat drips from the food, it produces PAHs. To reduce this from happening, remove the skin from chicken, trim the fat from steaks, buy leaner cuts and buy low fat burgers.

PAHs will be in the smoke that comes off of the barbecue, so try not to breathe it in, or even get in contact with your skin. This may be difficult, depending on the wind. Taking a shower and changing your clothes soon after barbecuing may also be advisable.

A marinade reduces the amount of fat dripping onto the grill, reducing the amount of smoke and PAHs. Marinating your meat in beer first can help lower amounts of PAHs. Darker beer marinades produced the least amount of PAHs in the meat, up to 68% less.

Precooking in the oven, removes some of the fat that may drip and produce PAHs. Precooking also reduces the amount of cooking time that the food will be exposed to PAHs.

Also, Beware of Grill Brushes

Grill brushes can be a more immediate danger from outdoor grilling. The University of Missouri School of Medicine researchers, published a study identifying more than 1,600 injuries between 2002 and 2012 that occurred after individuals cleaned their grill with wire bristle brushes. These estimates are low, since the study did not include injuries treated at urgent care centers or other outpatient settings.

Loose bristles may fall off your brush, adhere to the grill and end up in your next meal. When eaten, they can lead to injuries to your mouth, tonsils and throat.

Safer options include nylon-bristle brushes, power washing your grates or running the grates through your dishwasher.

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