Another Reason To Eat Less Meat: Charring Causes Cancer

Not all that long ago, my brother and I were barbecuing together. His son was helping out with the little fiesta and I remember him specifically telling his son to make sure that the meat didn't char. He said it would cause cancer if it charred. While I naturally believed this, because, after all, eating char just doesn't seem safe to me, I still wasn't dead-set on believing that there was a whole lot of merit to his claim.

As it turns out though, eating charred, well-done meat isn't safe. According to a recent article published in Yahoo! News, those who regularly eat steak that has been very well-done are 60% more likely to be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer than those who eat steak less well-done. Research done by the University of Minnesota showed that when meat is cooked very well, or even just well, by means of frying, grilling, or barbecuing, it forms heterocyclic amines. The charred portions of well-done meat have the highest concentration of HAs and those portions should not be consumed.

Although it's hard for researchers to say right now, it does seem as though avoiding meat all together or just turning down the heat on the meat could greatly impact the health of consumers.