Charcoal and cancer risk ???

[El Ropo]

Oh, and I'm gonna have a go at makin my own tallow this week. Should be interesting.

 

[Bartstop]

I am by no means a Doctor or Scientist but it is my understanding that every one of us has had cancer cells in our body at some point in our lives. Our immune system seeks out and destroys these defective cells. People that actually come down with cancer have not been able to destroy the defective cells for whatever reason. The point I'm trying to make is that we're all exposed to carcinogens on a daily basis. Our body's should be able to kill any cancer cells that develop. If your body can't, it doesn't matter if you're cooking over fire or not, you're going to get it.


Bartstop

 

[kmarsal]

Thank you all for the excellent input, exactly what I needed. Will report on my progresa.

 

[baldbill]

Breathing will kill you, the FDA says that eventually it is 100 percent fatal.

 

[LMAJ]

It's safe. Question has been asked here a million times. Same responses will be given. I would bother to reply, but tired of it really.

If you are so worried about cancer, just give up, because being alive causes cancer, so does breathing air, etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oDAkmfoAgA

 

[Transplanted Texan]

When my father brought this up to me (both parents have their doctorates in Physics and Medical Physiology, respectively), I countered with,"Man has been cooking food over fire for how long now?"

If you want to go scientific on her, you could always resort to indirect cooking with a drip-pan to keep the fat from dripping directly onto the coals or you could make heavy use of a rotisserie (which keeps far more of the juices inside of the meat).

I'd say if you're going to truly worry about the cancer risks of charcoal cooking, then it's also time to throw away your cell phones and never again touch most of the supermarket items that are touted as "sugar-free" (aka aspartame, which has been linked to lymphoma).

 

[Kevin1963]

Ask Your Own Body

I know I'm commenting two years after this thread ended, but I want to add something very important that I didn't see mentioned for the sake of those still reading this thread today.

Reviewing scientific studies about which fuels and techniques make the healthiest barbeques can be helpful, but our own bodies knows more about chemistry than any human scientists do and have our own best interests at heart more than any paid researchers do.

Our bodies don’t talk to us in words, but they do talk to us through feelings, and if you will learn to pay attention, you can understand what your own body tells you.

For me, when I eat meat barbequed over propane, the black slick that develops on the meat and gets on my hands and plates is not appealing to me when I look at it. When I wash it off the meat, I still sometimes get mild headaches that last several hours. When I don’t wash this off the meat, the headaches, if they occur, are more intense. For me, my body is telling me to stay away from propane barbequing.

When I eat meat barbequed over an electric grill, there are no disagreeable physical side effects noticed around the meal. The food tastes good but somehow sterile. For me, this is my body telling me cooking this way is just fine healthwise, but there must be a better way to barbeque.

When I eat meat barbequed over charcoal briquettes that are not completely ashed over, I can really smell the coal and other ingredients of the briquettes and taste these flavors in my meat. I feel a mild revulsion to these smells, flavors, and my energy level depresses slightly. If I wait until the coals are ashed over to begin cooking, any disagreeableness mentioned is barely barely noticeable and the food tastes good. For me, my body is telling me if I use charcoal briquettes, cook on them after they're ashed over.

When I eat meat barbequed over 100 percent wood lump charcoal that was not completely ashed over, I taste soot in my food, but there is no other disagreeableness. When the lump charcoal is ashed over before cooking, the food tastes great. For me, my body is telling me if I use 100 percent wood lump charcoal, the more ashed over the coals are before cooking, the better. (The problem is there's not much cooking time left if I wait until the lump charcoal is completely ashed over).

When I eat meat barbequed over clean firewood burned down to coals, the smell and taste of the food is heavenly, and my energy is enhanced. For me, my body is telling me this is the ideal way to go.

Since this is the Barbeque Brethren forum, and the name implies an almost religious reverence to barbequing, I want to add one more interesting thing. In the Bible, Jesus, the master healer, who would know if barbequing over wood coals was healthy or not, obviously approved (John 21:9) since he did it himself.

I hope this helps you understand better how your own body can help you know the best way for you to barbeque. Your own body's opinion on these things is really the most important of all since it's your body that eats your barbeque fare. -Kevin

 

[SmittyJonz]

Who Cares........ Most of us are gonna Die of Cancer or a Heart Attack regardless of what we do - so might as well Eat Good !

 

[KpaxFAQ]

I'll take death over propane

 

[Dawson]

Everything causes cancer

 

[thunter]

I'll take death over propane

:laugh::clap2:

 

[thunter]

If using charcoal is wrong, I don't wanna be right! :becky:

 

[grantw]

I did some reading on this a while back, i think us indirect water cooker guys are safe, the rest of you are in trouble:roll:

 

[Fwismoker]

Y'all give me a headache. Cook the way the food tastes best...except for fried.

 

[caseydog]

Just to be transparent, I did not read the four pages of posts before this.

I am a cancer survivor. The type of cancer I had does not have a genetic origin, and doesn't have a direct link to personal behaviors or environmental influences. I did live for five years in a town that has a high incidence of cancer, I don't know if that had any effect. I'll probably never know.

As a cancer survivor, I try to live a fairly healthy life. But, I also know that no matter how "safely" I try to live, I am still going to die some day.

Sitting in a chair on the other side of the desk of a doctor telling you, "You have cancer, " changes your whole way of looking at life.

I love smoked and grilled foods, and I've read stuff saying that these foods may not be good for me. But, I know for sure that eating the highly processed foods that most Americans eat is way worse.

So, I'll take a grass-fed ribeye home-cooked over charcoal over anything "Healthy Choice" has to offer.

CD

 

[retired trucker]

To me, it all boils down to "Eat healthy and die anyway". We started the inevitable spiral to our own death, the second we were conceived in our mother's womb. I have heard people say that they do not drink, smoke, curse, or chase wild women. Good for them, but what the hell are they living for? We only have one chance on this farked up earth and the life we live on it. So, loosen up and enjoy whatever makes your trigger trip, as long as it is morally ok, and does not harm or inconvenience the other inhabitants of said earth.

To quote an old saying, "When I die, I want to slide into Heaven in an old worn out body gasping for breath, and saying- Boy, what a ride, but it was worth it!" Loosen up and enjoy life.

Blessings, ray:

Omar

 

[Toni1948]

I have a relative who will be 93 in August who has been smoking cigarettes all her life and she drinks black coffee. She lives in a neighborhood close to where the old steel mills used to be in Pittsburgh, and when they were pouring steel back in the day, you could smell and taste the chemicals in the air. It was awful.

As soon as we take our first breath, the countdown begins. Why do some people get cancer and others don't? I don't know.

 

[THoey1963]

My Dad put it this way:

I can give up smoking to save my lungs...
I can give up liquor to save my kidneys...
I can give up chasing other men's women to save being shot in the a$$ with buckshot...
But tomorrow, I could go to cross the street and get hit by a bus... You might as well enjoy your life...

You know what, I'll have that ribeye. And I'll wash it down with a beer. And probably have a smokey treat afterwards. The wife won't allow me to chase other women, but 3 out of 4 ain't bad...

 

[Gnarlbecue]

If you are really worried about it, just make sure that your coals are fully ashed over before you cook, and try to keep your smoke clean.

Marinate in fruit juices or rub with olive oil. These will reduce the nasties or prevent them from forming in the first place.

Cook your food indirect, so the fat doesn't fall on the coals too much.

If you grill all the time, double up on the anti-oxidants in your diet like fresh fruit juice or red wine.

And try not to inhale the coal and wood smoke too much when you're cooking; that's probably way worse than eating it.

Above all, enjoy your life. I wouldn't want to live forever if it meant I couldn't Q!

 

[NeilH]

I like to use all natural briquettes to help me feel better about cancer from coals. But on the other hand, I like a twelve pack during my cook most of the time. . One just negates the other. Live life like you won't basically is what I try to do.

Basically: "If it taste good, spit it out." LOL