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Barbecuing Doesn't Need To Go Up In Smoke Due To Cancer Risk

, Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.

What you barbecue is only one thing that can make barbecuing less and more healthy. (Photo by Katie Darby/Invision for Kingsford and Pandora/AP Images)

Yes, yes, you've probably heard the health hazards of barbecuing. Consuming barbecued meats could increase your risk of cancer. So does this mean that one of America's favorite pastimes should go up in smoke? Not necessarily. As Eric Clapton once sang, "It's in the way that you use it."

When it comes to the health risks of barbecuing, one culprit is the type of food that you are barbecuing. Some meats are higher in fat, calories and salt. Whether you boil, broil, fry or microwave them, wrap them in a blanket, talk or sing to them nicely, or eat them "raw," processed meats such as hot dogs, sausage and bacon are still processed meats. Processed meats include added ingredients such as salt, nitrates and other chemicals that can lead to health problems. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the links between consuming processed meats and cancer, placing processed meat in the same category as plutonium, as the BBC explains. As the American Cancer Society describes, the WHO declaration emerged from a review organized by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) that involved 22 experts from 10 countries reviewing more than 800 studies. For instance, the review found that consuming 50 grams of processed meat each day increased colorectal cancer risk by 18%.

A second culprit is what you put on meat when and after you barbecue. Barbecue sauce can have lots of sugar, sodium and artificial ingredients. The same is true with ketchup. Ranch dressing and mayonnaise, other popular barbecue accompaniments, can be rich in fat as well. All of these add calories to your food.

The third culprit is what barbecuing does to meat. Exposing meat to high temperatures or cooking them for a long time can generate heterocyclic amine (HCA) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that can cause cancerFeeding rodents with HCAs and PAHs has led to breast, colon, liver, skin, lung, prostate and other cancers. Now, rodents are not same as humans. For example, most rodents do not wear pants. And rodent studies involved feeding rodents large amounts of HCAs and PAHs. The links between HCAs and PAHs and cancer in humans is not as clear. However, as the American Cancer Society summarizes, studies have shown correlations between diets high in well-done, fried or barbecued meats and increased colorectal, pancreatic and prostate cancer risk.

This grill is too hot. Keeping the flames controlled when you barbecue can keep the meat from being exposed to too-high temperatures and reduce the amount of carcinogens formed. (Photo: Shutterstock)

Given these risk, you can take the following steps to make barbecuing healthier:

  • Choose healthier items to barbecue: Instead of hot dogs and bacon, how about vegetables? If vegetables don't cut it for you (yes, as Nick Jonas says, nothing is quite like bacon), then try fish, chicken and turkey breasts. Make sure you check the ingredients in your meat so you minimize using processed meats.
  • Stop being so saucy: Either limit the use of sauce or replace sauce with healthier options such as a marinade with olive oil, lemon juice, rosemary and cinnamon.
  • Remove the fat: Use leaner cuts and trim the fat such as chicken skin. (Yes, I know, the chicken skin can taste the best.)
  • Limit barbecuing time: Pre-cooking meats in the microwave can reduce barbecuing time so that it serves more as touch-up work and doesn't produce as many HCAs and PAHs. Pay more attention to how long each piece of meat is on the grill rather than ogling the guests.
  • Don't let things get too hot: This applies to cooking and other activities at the barbecue, especially if it is a company barbecue. Make sure that the meat is not sitting in the middle of an open flame or directly touching the hottest part of the grill.
  • Turn, turn, turn: Show everyone your flipping skills by turning the meat over frequently, limiting exposure of meat to high heat, and prevent formation of those flipping HCAs and PAHs.
  • Clean the grill: The grill is like underwear and should be cleaned and maintained regularly. Consider taking breaks during a barbecuing session and cleaning the meat and charred debris from the grill.
  • Stop the gravy train: This may be an unpopular suggestion. Erma Bombeck once said that she comes from  family where gravy is considered a beverage. Nonetheless, meat drippings from the grill can be high in HCAs and PAHs. Thus, you may not want to use the drippings for gravy.
  • Don't be burnt out: Yes, those burnt and charred portions may be the tastiest parts, but since they may be chock full o' HCAs and PAHs, you may want to remove and avoid them.
  • Don't barbecue every day: There is a difference between barbecuing every day versus just on special occasions such as the Fourth of July, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Compliment Your Mirror Day (July 3) and Justin Bieber's birthday. Occasional indulgences probably won't affect your health risk significantly, unless you already have a chronic disease.

So you don't have to ditch the barbecue just yet...unless it is broken or has some underwear on it. Just take the above precautions to keep your health from being grilled.
