001106 Flipping Burgers Cuts Cancer Risk

New York - While overcooking meat has long been linked to cancer risk, new research shows that flipping burgers may lower the odds. Frequently turning burgers on the frying pan seems to cut the production of possible cancer-causing compounds called heterocyclic amines (HCAs).

When researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California tested various burger-frying methods, they found that a low-heat pan combined with frequent flipping produced the lowest HCA levels. The tactic also wiped out the sickness-causing bacterium E. coli. The results are published in the November 1st issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

HCAs form only when muscle meats like beef, pork and poultry are cooked at high temperatures. Because the compounds have been linked to cancer in both animal and human studies, people should always avoid overcooking meat, Cynthia P. Salmon told Reuters Health.

To devise the recipe for a germ-free, low-HCA burger, Salmon's team cooked ground beef patties at various pan temperatures and flipping frequencies. They found that cooking the burgers to an internal temperature of 158 degrees Fahrenheit eradicated bacteria, regardless of pan temperature or flipping. HCA levels, on the other hand, depended largely on pan heat and flipping. Levels remained low when the burgers were flipped every minute in a 320-degree pan. HCAs rose in patties that were turned just once after cooking for 5 minutes.

Frequent flipping appears to help because it allows each side of the burger some cooling-off time, Salmon said. And, she added, the meat cooks more quickly, which permits less time for HCAs to form.

Meat thermometers can signal when a burger has hit the bacteria-killing temperature. This, Salmon noted, is the most immediate health concern.

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