Marinating reduces grilling health hazards.

• Position: Your Life - Brief Article

With the outdoor grilling season in full gear, the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) warns studies have found grilling and broiling cause "muscle meats" (red meat, poultry, and fish) to produce cancer-causing compounds. These compounds, called heterocyclic amines (HCAs), have been shown to produce tumors in animals and possibly increase the risk of cancers of the breast, colon, stomach, and prostate in humans.

Another cancer-causing substance forms when fat from meat, poultry, or fish drips onto hot coals or stones and then, via smoke and/or flare-ups, is deposited onto the food being grilled. The types of carcinogens formed in this process are called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

Fortunately for consumers, according to Melanie Polk, AICR's director of nutrition education, "There is no need to eliminate grilling or broiling completely. Although animal meats are the major concern, grilled vegetables and fruits, or `blackened' dishes, in which only the seasoning is charred, present a substantially lower risk."

She stresses that "It is still possible to enjoy barbecued meats. Marinating meats before grilling can significantly reduce the amount of carcinogen that might otherwise form." Studies have shown that even briefly marinating foods is effective in reducing the amount of HCAs--in some cases by as much as 92 to 99%.

Scientists aren't sure exactly how marinades act to reduce the...