More notes from my book.... thought you'd all find this interesting, esp.
since someone mentioned a study about this but couldn't find the references.


Overcooking Kills
 A 1998 National Cancer Institute study confirmed the work of Dr. Weston
Price and Dr. Francis Pottenger**. The study, conducted on Nebraska farmers,
including 176 stomach cancer patients and 503 healthy people, revealed that
those who preferred their meat medium, medium-well or well done were three
times more likely to get stomach cancer than those who liked rare or
medium-rare meat.  This is not surprising if you understand what happens to
food in cooking.

When meat is cooked at too high a temperature or when overcooked (so that
the internal temperature becomes too high) the proteins toughen and are
denatured and heterocyclic amines (carcinogenic agents) are formed.
Conditions which cause meat foods to char, such as grilling and broiling are
particularly damaging.

From my readings I also gathered that when fatty meat sits directly above
the coals the fats may fall onto the hot coals and rise up as smoke.
Placing the meat over a drip tray, and surrounding the tray with the hot
coals can make for safer grilling of fatty meats or skin-on poultry.  Gas
grills pose another alternative which may be safer than using conventional
coals.

Lastly, we must put all of this in perspective.  In the context of all of
the hazardous activities one might engage in, grilling and broiling are not
as risky as drinking alcohol, soda pop, or chlorinated tap water (which has
been shown to be carcinogenic!), or eating a diet rich in sugar, refined and
processed foods (including breads, pasta, crackers, cold cereals, pop,
candy, etc.)  refined vegetable oils, margarine, hydrogenated fats, and food
additives.

 ** Note: Price's and Pottenger's works confirmed the value of raw meat and
the fact that cooking denatures certain proteins, making them less
bio-available.  Price studied native peoples/HG's isolated from the foods of
commerce.....Pottenger did studies on cats, which were very interesting and
have many applications to people, and observed people who came to his
sanatorium.  (The video Pottenger's Cats is well worth viewing.  It explains
the modern osteoporosis problem; people are being born now with skeletons
which are less calcified at birth..... It also explains a lot of behavioral,
reproductive, and endocrine problems which are so prevalent nowadays, the
Price Pottenger Nutrition Foundation sells the video.)

That's all for now,
Rachel