Cooking foods for all but brief periods of time can destroy many valuable nutrients. More alarming is that when foods are cooked to the point of browning or charring, the organic compounds they contain undergo changes in structure producing carcinogens.

Barbequed meats seem to pose the worst health threat in this regard. When buring fat drips onto an open flame, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) - dangerous carcinogens - are formed. When amino acids and other chemicals found in muscle are exposed to high temperatures, other carcinogens, called heterocyclic aromatic amines (HAAs), are created. In fact, many of the chemicals used to produce cancer in laboratory animals have been isolated from cooked proteins.

It is important to note, though, that cooked meats do not pose the only threat. Even browned or burned bread crusts contain a variety of carcinogenic substances.

The dangers posed by the practice of cooking foods at high temperatures or until browned or burned should not be dismissed. Although eating habits vary widely from person to person, it seems safe to assume that many people consume many grams of overcooked foods a day. By comparison, only half a gram of this same dangerous burned material is inhailed by someone who smokes two packs of cigarettes a day. Clearly, by eating produce raw or only lightly cooked, and by greatly limiting your consumption of meat, you will be doing much to decrease your risk of cancer and, possibly, other disorders.

• Guidelines For Selecting & Preparing Foods
  
• Avoid Foods That Contain Additives & Artificial Ingredients
  
• Is Aspartame A Safe Sugar Substitute
  
• Increase Your Consumption of Raw Produce
  
• Avoid Overcooking Your Foods
  
• Use Proper Cooking Utensils
  
• Limit Your Use of Salt

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LINKS

Beef.org: Beef Facts - Mutagens/Carcinogens And Meat

The Role of Carcinogens in Breast Cancer

Carcinogens in Many Foods

The Hindu: Linking Cooking & Carcinogens

Doctors Release Tips for Healthy, Hearty Summer Barbecue

CancerVax Corporation: Cancer Information - Cancer Causes