Chemical Used in Teflon & Non-Stick Cookware Linked to Heart Disease

[Zippyjuan]

Too much of anything can be bad for you- including iron. Moderation in all things (don't eat your pans).
http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/the-health-hazards-of-cast-iron-pans/

While this may seem like heresy particularly since cast iron skillets are almost universally considered to be a healthy and durable choice for preparation of homecooked meals, I have good reasons for my head scratching decision.



Excess Iron is a Health Hazard

My primary reason for opting out of cast iron revolves around the health problems caused by excess iron in the diet.

Women do not typically need to worry about this problem as long as they are still menstruating as losing blood each month is a protective factor against this condition. Growing children also are not particularly susceptible as growth obviously requires more blood and more iron.

However, for adult men (even fully grown young men) and menopausal women, cast iron can definitely pose a problem as the iron that naturally gets into food from utilization of this type of cookware can result in iron rising to toxic levels which is associated with a host of serious health conditions. Iron is one of the few minerals we cannot eliminate except through blood loss, therefore supplements should never contain iron and cooking with cast iron is a questionable choice for this segment of the population.

Most people view iron as a nutrient, and indeed it is. It is also a powerful agent of oxidation in the body, which means it increases the chances of cancer and can severely damage the heart, arteries, and other organs when intake is excessive. In addition, persons with an inherited condition called haemochromatosis, or iron overload disease, can be especially harmed from iron intake. If you have any family members with this condition (about 1 million Americans), you should be especially careful with sources of iron in your diet.

Iron Overload Symptoms

Unfortunately, the symptoms of iron overload are similar to those of other conditions, therefore it may be wise to request a transferrin saturation test at your next check up to eliminate iron as a potential source of your health woes if you suffer from any of the following and are an adult male or menopausal female:
■Fatigue
■Joint or muscle weakness
■Mysterious stomach or other gastrointestinal pain/nausea
■Weight loss that cannot be explained
■Elevated liver enzymes
■Shortness of breath
■Early menopause
■Loss of sex drive
■Impotence
■Loss of body hair

Later stage symptoms include:
■Greying or bronzing of the skin
■Blood sugar issues
■Irregular heartbeat
■Liver problems
■Arthritis

If you’ve been cooking with cast iron for a long time and are an adult male or menopausal female, it might be wise to donate blood on occasion to reduce iron stores and switch to another type of nontoxic cookware such as enamel, glass, or titanium.

 

[dannno]

So nice of our local contrarian troll to stop by. So you know how everyone uses their cookware? Non-stick is used with oil. Many people only have non-stick cookware. As a matter of fact, I help out on a voluntary basis in a kitchen sometimes, and (large) non-stick cookware is used for deep frying. Fill it up with hydrogenated Crisco and fry away.

Non-stick certainly can be used to fry in, but apparently the only way to safely use a non-stick pan with these chemicals is to use it on low to low-medium heat applications and no metal utensils to help ensure you don't scratch up the surface. Once it is scratched it starts leeching and high heat applications cause leeching.

 

[Zippyjuan]

For the non- stick pan to work its best, it should be hot. It helps close up any spaces between the non-stick particles on it so it works better. You are right about not using metal utensils in them so you don't scratch the coating.

I was curious as to how "hot" they considered high heat before the chemical may be released. Wiki says that that temperature is 660 degrees Fahrenheit.

Concerns have been raised over the possible negative effects of using PTFE-coated cooking pans. When pans are overheated beyond approximately 349 °C (660 °F) the PTFE coating begins to dissociate,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-stick_pan

If you have your pan at nearly 700 degrees, you are probably going to be burning your foods. Grills or pizza ovens may run 600 degrees if they are really hot. How about a stove top?
http://www.ehow.com/info_12019323_hot-stove-top.html
Gas Stove tops:

When the stove is set to a low simmer, the stove top surface can reach a temperature of 140 to 195 degrees Fahrenheit, based on the type of stove you have. If it’s set on medium, the stove top temperature can reach around 212 degrees F, and if it’s set on high — to fry foods, for example — the stove top can get as hot as 350 degrees F.

Conventional Electric Coil:

The stove top surfaces for conventional electric ranges with standard coil burners do not get quite as hot as those on a gas stove. This is because more of the heat is maintained inside the heating element, and is directed upward and not out to the sides the way a gas burner flame is. Therefore, the stove top surface temperature might only range from 100 to around 140 degrees Fahrenheit. However, the longer the heating element is on, the hotter the temperature of the stove top can get.

Ceramic Tops:

Many models have a light that indicates that the surface is hot to prevent users from accidentally touching the surface. Even then, the temperature of the stove top will rarely exceed 140 degrees Fahrenheit when on a high setting.

Downdraft Cook Tops

Downdraft cook tops have exhaust fans that pull the hot air below the burners — gas or electric — to vent smoke outdoors. As a result, the cook top surface remains much cooler. The surface temperature will never reach 350 degrees Fahrenheit, as can be the case of a gas stove with the burners set on high, and may never reach a surface temperature higher than 100 degrees F if the burners and heating elements are not on for an extended period of time.


Induction Cook Tops

Induction cook tops are also referred to as “cool touch” cook tops. This is because they only transfer heat to the cookware and not to anything else — including the cook top. As a result, an induction cook top surface won't get too much hotter than room temperature or the overall temperature surrounding the cook top area.


Wood-burning Stoves

The stove top of a wood-burning stove gets hottest of all. These stoves are designed to generate and radiate heat from inside the firebox and from the exterior surfaces, including the stove top. Thermometers for wood stoves are designed to read temperatures that range from 100 degrees to 900 degrees Fahrenheit. A range from 400 to 600 degrees F is considered a “best zone” for heating, and any temperature above 600 degrees F is considered to be too hot.

So unless you are seriously abusing your equipment, you won't be getting near the temperature where the chemical will break down and be released from cookware.

As for deep frying, checking that out indicates that you don't want to get your oil (and thus your pan) over 400 degrees F.

And just to mention it again, the chemical is supposed to be 95% removed from products as of 2010.

 

[donnay]

Too much of anything can be bad for you- including iron. Moderation in all things (don't eat your pans).
http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/the-health-hazards-of-cast-iron-pans/

OMG! I actually am agreeing with Zippy here!

I have glass pans, ceramic, stainless steel, Orgreenic and Porcelain Enameled Cast Iron Cookware. I switch off and try not use the same pans everyday.

 

[Acala]

Too much of anything can be bad for you- including iron. Moderation in all things (don't eat your pans).
http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/the-health-hazards-of-cast-iron-pans/

Ummmm . . no. While men should not take any iron supplements or eat any iron "fortified" food, iron skillets are not a problem. You might ask why, but only if you don't know how to properly season an iron skillet. In a properly seasoned iron skillet, the food never touches iron. Instead, the food is cooked on a thin layer of carbon baked onto the suface of the skillet. This is why you never scrub, or even use soap on, an iron skillet. Instead, you simply rinse it out with water while it is still hot, brush away any clinging food, dry it gently and oil it. Voila! A natural, healthy, low-stick cooking surface.

 

[donnay]

Ummmm . . no. While men should not take any iron supplements or eat any iron "fortified" food, iron skillets are not a problem. You might ask why, but only if you don't know how to properly season an iron skillet. In a properly seasoned iron skillet, the food never touches iron. Instead, the food is cooked on a thin layer of carbon baked onto the suface of the skillet. This is why you never scrub, or even use soap on, an iron skillet. Instead, you simply rinse it out with water while it is still hot, brush away any clinging food, dry it gently and oil it. Voila! A natural, healthy, low-stick cooking surface.

Ummm...what stops the process of rancidity of certain oils seeping into the pores of the Iron? The type of oil certainly can make a difference as to how you season your pan.

Iron Content

Cooking foods in cast iron cookware can cause small amounts of iron to leach into the food you're preparing. This is especially true of foods that are highly acidic, like tomato sauce. In most cases, this leaching is not a problem and may even help you, especially if you're anemic or not getting enough iron in your diet. If your diet is already extremely high in iron, the additional iron can cause you to have iron overload. Iron overload occurs when you have too much iron in your body and can cause health problems, such as heart palpitations, joint pain and greater risk of heart disease.

Other Food Dangers

If properly cleaned and maintained, iron cookware poses no known food dangers, but if iron cookware is not kept up, it can cause issues with any foods cooked in the item. Unlike most other cookware, iron is a porous surface. If a pan is not properly cleaned and seasoned regularly, the coating that forms around the outside of the pan, sealing the surface, wears away, and food particles can slip into the pan's pores. Once that happens, any food cooked in the pan in the future could become contaminated with those food particles. In some cases, food contamination can lead to sickness, such as food poisoning.

http://www.ehow.com/list_7548134_dangers-iron-cookware.html

 

[Zippyjuan]

There is risk in everything you eat, drink, breathe, and do. The risks from iron from the cast iron pan are incredibly small. The risks from the non- stick pans are very, very small. If you get too hung up on these sorts of things, that is not healthy either.

Freedom from fear as well as freedom to have fear.

 

[smithtg]

There is risk in everything you eat, drink, breathe, and do. The risks from iron from the cast iron pan are incredibly small. The risks from the non- stick pans are very, very small. If you get too hung up on these sorts of things, that is not healthy either.

Freedom from fear as well as freedom to have fear.

thanks, I needed someone to say that. Im sure all the cooking oil is so bad for you too