000715 Smoky Barbecue Sometimes Linked to Cancer

Oakland, CA - While speaking to a banquet-room audience full of well- educated physicians, lawyers, engineers and other professionals recently, one line of Dr. Ralph Petersen's homespun advice on avoiding the risks of colorectal cancer caught everyone's attention.

“We're barbecuing too many meats,” said the Alameda County doctor addressing the audience at an American Cancer Society cancer awareness town hall in Oakland. Consuming too much grilled meat, which is often over cooked, “is creating tumors in our colons.”

The American Cancer Society concurs, citing recent scientific research that found red meat cooked at high temperatures causes carcinogens which may increase risk of abdominal, colorectal and other cancers. This holiday weekend as millions of Californians prepare for backyard barbecues, park cookouts and patio parties, the Society is suggesting simple guidelines to make traditional grilling gatherings healthier.

Use an acid-based marinade for at least 40 minutes Use small, lean cuts of meat Try pre-cooking the meat indoors to avoid overcooking Do not eat any charred or blackened meat Enjoy plenty of fruits, vegetables and bean side dishes

Ever since early Spanish explorers adopted the grilling process from Caribbean and native American Indians and called it “barbacoa,” the word (later translated to “barbecue” by the English) has been part of the American lexicology. Fires starting, coal crackling and the tasty searing of beef, pork, lamb and chicken has long been a favorite summer pastime and excuse for gathering family and friends.

“There are simple ways to prepare and cook your barbecued meal now so that it will taste just as good or even better,” than searing fatty red meats, said Cheryl Rock, Ph.D., an associate professor of nutrition at the University of California at San Diego and an American Cancer Society volunteer.

For starters, choose lean cuts of beef, use ground sirloin instead of regular hamburger and try low-fat hot dogs, nutritionists say.

Los Angeles certified nutrition specialist Carolyn Katzin, also an American Cancer Society volunteer, suggests marinating red meat before placing it on the grill.

“I suggest that people marinate their meat at least 40 minutes in an acid- based marinade,” Katzin said. “And that can be anything from grape juice, vinegar, wine, lemon juice or tomatoes.

“Besides making the meat more tender, the acid tends to inhibit the carcinogen-forming process that happens when grilling,” she said.

When meat is grilled at high temperatures, carcinogens, like nitrosamines and hetrocyclic amines, are created. These are known to be linked to cancer, recent studies have shown. When grilling fatty meat, the drippings drop down on the coals creating additional chemicals in the smoke that also comes back on that meat.

“A smart barbecue chef will have a thermometer to check the temperature and make sure it's high enough to kill bacteria but not overcooking the meat,” to where it is charred or black, said Rock, who is also a registered dietician. “Overcooking promotes the cancer-causing agents.”

Colleen Doyle, the director of nutrition and physical activity at the Society's Atlanta national headquarters, suggested backyard barbecuers consider pre-cooking meat indoors.

“You might want to pre-cook your meat a bit inside in the oven or on the stove ahead of time,” she said, “and finish it up on the grill.

“It's also a good idea to create an aluminum foil barrier between the coals and the food being grilled,” poking in small holes to allow for the meat fat to drain, Doyle said. “This decreases contact with the flame that might lead to charring and the blackening of the food which is associated with risk of cancer.”

In addition to red meat, skinless chicken and fish are also healthy alternatives for the grill, several of the health educators said. Serving plenty of fruits, vegetables and beans, which are high in vitamin C and anti-oxidants, is also recommended.

“Let folks pig out on strawberries, blueberries and raspberries” Rock said. Meat should never be the focus of the barbecue, she added.

“When you have a lot (of different kinds of food) there,” she said, “people don't feel compelled to come over and stuff themselves with a pound of meat.”

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