Aimee Duffy MD Talks about the Do’s & Don’t s about National Grilling Month!

Grilling Health Mistakes Overview 0:00

Welcome back to Access Carolina. National Grilling Week month is well underway and grilling is one of America's favorite pastimes. But there are some health mistakes. Even the great grill masters might be making. We've got Dr. Amy Duffy here to talk about five health mistake to avoid at the grill. Welcome, happy grilling month. Thank you, welcome. Something we all celebrate. You say overcooking meat is a common mistake, but there's a health issue beyond how you've just ruined your steak or your burger's flavor and texture.

Why Overcooking Meat Is a Health Risk 0:24

That may not taste so well either, right? So according to Harvard research, overcooked meat and consuming overcoked meat can increase your risk of high blood pressure up to 15%. Really? And guys, increases your risks for prostate cancer up 60%. So don't overcook your meat. So you're correct to get a medium rare steak. There's some health benefits there. Yes. Is it a carcinogen thing, too, with the overdone? That's the carcinegen thing with prostate cancer and just stimulating inflammation for the high blood pressure.

And with your steak, as long as you are cooking the surface, then we don�t have the risk of the salmonella food poisoning issue. All right, so healthier and more delicious to a rarer steak we always knew it was true. Now, your next mistake to avoid has to do with burger flipping. What are people doing wrong when it comes to burger flipping? Well, there's a lot of controversy, because a lotta people throw that burger on, say, don't touch it, leave it alone.

Flipping Burgers for Better Cooking 1:12

But I say keep your spatula happy. You wanna flip your burgers every one minute. Why? It increases the temperature gradually throughout the meat, which decreases the formation of those cancer-causing chemicals that are called HCAs. So another carcinogen issue there. Interesting, so you're still gonna get the good browned outsides, but if you keep it moving? And some say that helps keep it more juicy because you're not, all the juice is not dripping down, you are actually flipping it and letting it incorporate back into the meat.

Alright, everyone's ears perked up, whether it's for health issues, if it is going to taste extra juicy. Next is the cleaning of the grill. How often is it necessary to do that and how are we supposed to?

Safer Grill Cleaning Methods 1:51

Well, of course, I think we should clean our grill after each use or even before each if you didn't do it the last time. But here's the mistake is using one of these grill wire brushes. So a lot of people want to use the wire. Well here is what happens. Those little wire bristles can break off and get into your food if it's still stuck. If you're really getting hard and you've got that stuck meat or particles on there and they get stuck there, then you are putting your new food on their. That's going to lead to planned emergency room visits.

You got some injuries to your mouth, the back of your throat. So instead, what do you want to use as one of these grill cleaning tools that are made out of wood? Okay, just rub that along the same way. You're just knocking off the big stuff. There's still some seasoning to be had on your grill after you do that. And then depending on the cut of meat you're working with, there might be some excess fat that needs to trimmed off.

Trimming Fat and Reducing Inflammation 2:39

What do we need to know about that? So eating fat cooked at really high temperatures actually triggers inflammation. We've talked about inflammation before and we want to reduce inflammation because we know that's the enemy to our health. Yeah, all right, so trim the fat off your meat as much as you can. Your burgers, you want to try to get the lower fat settings as many as possible. And the fact can be trimmed. You can serve it up on the plate and then trim it that way. Don't have to trim off while you're cooking.

Maybe that's where some of the flavor comes from. Then whether it is beef or chicken, lamb or pork, marinating your meet is a fun way to kick up the flavors.

Marinating Meat for Protection and Flavor 3:13

But how do we get in trouble marinate? What can you teach us? So when we're marinating, this is another research that comes from the American Institute of Cancer who says you need to marinate your meat at least 30 minutes. Why? It starts to form a protective barrier around your meet that also prevents the formation of those cancer-causing chemicals we were talking about earlier. So another reduction of carcinogen. A great, easy marinade that you can do that adds some health is I've got a nice, pretty steak here.

I already trimmed the fat off of this steak. and adding some rosemary. Rosemary also has antioxidants in it. We talked about antioxidants before being those cancer-fighting chemicals as well. Just throw in a couple sprigs of rosemary in there, top it off. a higher smoke point, and so that, you know, decreases any risk when you're cooking on the grill. Of course, we're using really high temperatures. Throw in your seasoning, salt and pepper. This is a steak seasoning that I just grabbed. Try to make that one that doesn't have a lot of sugar in it, because we want to try to avoid the sugar as well.

And then some chopped garlic. Mix that all up, rub it around, cover it up. Throw it in your fridge at least 30 minutes, then you're ready to cook and enjoy. This smells great already. We've had this out on the grill. I know, we're enjoying the rosemary, the garlic flavors in there. Yeah. Well, I love it. Great tips. And I now you and your team at Carolina Integrative Medicine are really passionate about helping people achieve optimal lifelong health. So you are always given good advice like this.

Anything else you want to keep in mind before we go? You know, just enjoy your time outside, enjoy time with your family, and it's Barbie weekend, right? So we're talking about barbecues and let's get out there and enjoy. Thanks for having fun with us on Barbie Day, Dr. Amy Duffy.