{"id":5409,"date":"2017-06-29T15:10:49","date_gmt":"2017-06-29T19:10:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.willclower.com\/blog\/?p=5409"},"modified":"2019-05-30T14:34:11","modified_gmt":"2019-05-30T18:34:11","slug":"be-a-grill-master-not-a-grill-disaster","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?p=5409","title":{"rendered":"Be a Grill Master Not a Grill Disaster"},"content":{"rendered":"

This Independence Day, Do NOT Feel The Burn<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Independence Day is iconic and ironic. When we\u2019re not doing healthy things like playing softball, having a family picnic, or watching fireworks with family, we\u2019re probably overdoing the inevitable afternoon grillapolooza. \u2018Tis the season to fire up the Barbie, throw on some dogs and burgers and shrimps and ribs and veg kabobs and \u2026 you get the picture.<\/span><\/p>\n

Normally we just write off this time as a once per year gorge fest, turning a blind eye to any health concerns as well. I\u2019m not saying that your burger and braut bonanza can\u2019t pack on pounds and clog your arteries, but the good news is that Fourth of July cookouts don\u2019t have to be bad for you in other aspects, such as cancer.<\/span><\/p>\n

In this regard, most people think that the health of the grill is all about what you choose to cook. But your cooking technique is just as important, and can either decrease or increase the carcinogens you\u2019re downing by the spork-full. Even better, this solution actually makes your food taste even better!<\/span><\/p>\n

All About The Burn<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

All meats have amino acids (such as creatine) and sugars. Fine. But if you grill them at very high temperatures, they naturally produce molecules called heterocyclic amines (HCAs, also found in cigarette smoke). We\u2019ve known about these cancer-causing agents for 15 years now, and since then three more HCAs caused by grilling meat have been added to the list.<\/span><\/p>\n

Given this, you\u2019re just going to have to be at peace with a couple of things. First, you can\u2019t change the fact that meat on planet Earth is composed of amino acids and sugars. It is what it is. And you also can\u2019t change the fact that they can form chemicals that are really really bad for you.<\/span><\/p>\n

But what you can control is the total amount of HCA you\u2019re eating. The easiest way to do this is to control how well-done you take your meat and what kind of meat you\u2019re eating.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00b7 Well-done meat has 3.5 times more HCA than medium-rare meat.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00b7 When you compare different types of meats, sadly and tragically the highest concentration comes from bacon. The second highest is from fried pork, followed by beef, and then chicken. (This particular study didn\u2019t look at fish.)<\/span><\/p>\n

Where The Burn Is Best<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

This is great news for people who veg out at the grill. Feel free to singe away, knock yourself out and flame it up. Plants don\u2019t have the combination of creatine and sugar found in meats, nor do they have the fat drippings that smoke up into the other grilling-induced carcinogens called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).<\/span><\/p>\n

Burn baby, you got this. Grilled pineapple is fabulous with a bit of sesame oil over it. We grill apricots and peaches in exactly the same way and they are luscious. When it comes to your plate still smokin\u2019 hot from the grill, the sweetness of the fruit deepens \u2026 it\u2019ll make you weep.<\/span><\/p>\n

But What If You\u2019re A Meat-o-phile?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Sure you want to be healthy, but \u2026 bacon. Yes, you want to consume fewer carcinogens, but \u2026 ribs. And you\u2019d love to go all lean and green, but \u2026 salmon.<\/span><\/p>\n

The good news is cutting back on your carcinogens doesn\u2019t mean you have to cut back on flavor, meat, or even grilled meat. Below are some simple and tasty suggestions to help you minimize your exposure before, during, and after you grill.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pre-grill<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The Cancer Research Center of Hawaii found that a teriyaki marinade reduced HCAs by 67%. A turmeric-garlic sauce reduced them by 50% (recipe below)! The key here is to use a thin, vinegar based sauce, sans sugar.<\/span><\/p>\n

Compare that to a thick concentrated commercial barbecue sauce with additive sugars, which can actually triple the number of HCAs. So, if you\u2019re sitting around the house thinking that you just haven\u2019t had enough carcinogens in your food, well now you know how to fix that problem \u2013 slather on a thick BBQ sauce with added sugar.<\/span><\/p>\n

While these researchers were a) in Hawaii and b) grilling food on some beach somewhere, they somehow found time to do the experiments showing an HCA reduction in meats with marinades containing herbs and spices: notably those related from the mint family such as basil, mint, rosemary, sage, savory, marjoram, oregano, and thyme. Most of these herbs are rich in three compounds \u2013 carnosic acid, carnosol and rosmarinic acid \u2013 all of which are potent antioxidants.<\/span><\/p>\n

So be sure to include these tasty herbs in your marinade!<\/span><\/p>\n

Mid-grill<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

You have many settings on your barbecue, but for meat don\u2019t opt for \u201cblow torch\u201d. To avoid creating carcinogens, start on a medium high temp and flip the meat often. This will avoid charring, and that will avoid HCAs.<\/span><\/p>\n

Another great technique, in case you have multiple burners within your grill, is to grill up each side quickly, and then turn off the burner that lies directly under the meat while keeping the other burners on. That basically transitions your grill into an oven.<\/span><\/p>\n

Post-grill<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Once you\u2019ve cooked the food, there is one very commonsense thing you can do to maximize flavor and minimize carcinogens.<\/span><\/p>\n

First of all, don\u2019t eat char. Think about it. Char. It\u2019s just burnt meat. It\u2019s carbon. I know you like the idea of going all caveman with you singed side of mammoth, but char doesn\u2019t even have any flavor. Don\u2019t eat it \u2026 cut it off! If you do this one simple thing, you\u2019ll eliminate many of the HCAs that do happen to get through your marinade net.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bottom line?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Even briefly marinating foods is effective in reducing the amount of carcinogens — in some cases by as much as 92 to 99%. As a rule, use about one-half cup of marinade for every pound of food, although large pieces may need more to cover the food’s surface adequately.<\/span><\/p>\n

The amount of marinating time is up to you, because it only takes a few minutes to get the full cancer-preventing effect. Longer times will just add more flavor \u2013 good health has never been so tasty!<\/span><\/p>\n

By going low and slow, and refusing to eat char, you\u2019ll be able to get outside, grill, and add flavor to your barbeque without compromising your health at the same time!<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This Independence Day, Do NOT Feel The Burn Independence Day is iconic and ironic. When we\u2019re not doing healthy things like playing softball, having a family picnic, or watching fireworks … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[494],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5409","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7Qv5g-1pf","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2089,"url":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?p=2089","url_meta":{"origin":5409,"position":0},"title":"Video: How To Grill WITHOUT adding carcinogens","author":"Will Clower","date":"June 7, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Let the flames begin!! It's time to fire up the barbi and get outside to barbeque everything in sight!!This video talks about all the things you need to know to grill out safely this summer. \u00a0 For more information: Click here to visit Will Clower's website.","rel":"","context":"In \"cancer prevention\"","block_context":{"text":"cancer prevention","link":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?tag=cancer-prevention"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":13437,"url":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?p=13437","url_meta":{"origin":5409,"position":1},"title":"Pizza on the Grill","author":"Will Clower","date":"May 11, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Sometimes you don't want to heat up your kitchen. And especially as the weather gets warmer and people want to move outdoors to the barbeque, let's transfer those indoor meals right outside! The nice thing about this crazy idea of having pizza on the grill is that it literally cooks\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Articles"","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?cat=494"},"img":{"alt_text":"Pizza on the grill","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Pizza-on-the-grill.png?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Pizza-on-the-grill.png?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Pizza-on-the-grill.png?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Pizza-on-the-grill.png?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Pizza-on-the-grill.png?fit=1200%2C673&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":200,"url":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?p=200","url_meta":{"origin":5409,"position":2},"title":"Pizza on the Grill","author":"Will Clower","date":"July 30, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 Turn your grill into a pizza oven!\u00a0 You\u2019ll Need 1 package active dry yeast 1 cup warm water \u00bd teaspoon sugar 1 1\/2 teaspoons salt 1 Tablespoon olive oil (and extra to grease bowl) 3 1\/3 cup all-purpose flour Directions In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Recipes"","block_context":{"text":"Recipes","link":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?cat=380"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":446,"url":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?p=446","url_meta":{"origin":5409,"position":3},"title":"Grilled beef tenderloin with Yukon hobo packs","author":"Will Clower","date":"June 2, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"This recipe seems long, but it's only because there is some explaining that needs to be done regarding the hobo packs. But it is mostly just common sense, and once you put this together once you will see that it's really easy to toss together. And don't let the preparation\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Recipes"","block_context":{"text":"Recipes","link":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?cat=380"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":190,"url":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?p=190","url_meta":{"origin":5409,"position":4},"title":"Summer Salmon on the Grill with Tomato Rosemary Sauce","author":"Will Clower","date":"August 26, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"You can enjoy meals and at the same time help to prevent cancers! In order to do this, incorporate omega-3 fatty acid fish into your diet. For the Salmon: 4 fresh rosemary sprigs, each about 4-inches long 3 pounds center-cut salmon, cut into 6 slices about 2 inches thick 1\/2\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Recipes"","block_context":{"text":"Recipes","link":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?cat=380"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":445,"url":"https:\/\/www.mymedwellness.com\/blog\/?p=445","url_meta":{"origin":5409,"position":5},"title":"Pizza on the Grill","author":"Will Clower","date":"June 5, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Pizza is a forgotten health food. And it was no more than a basic everyday staple of veggies warmed over a piece of bread. In that spirit, we'll take the pizza outside and cook it in the most primitive way possible -- over an open fire. 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