By Barbara J. Hunter

30/09/2003

Most people strive to lead healthy lifestyles. We spend time learning which are the best foods to eat, and spend money to provide our tables with nutritious food. Unfortunately, we can go that extra mile and still come up nutritionally short if our kitchen is equipped with the wrong preparation tools. Moreover, the way we cook our foods could actually hinder the life healing properties of the food we eat.  

As consumers we have an array of pans to choose from. With one click on the Internet, we can scan thousands of pans, skillets and cooking ware. But which ones are safe for us to cook on, or are they all good since they are on the market? Let's take a closer look.  

Which Pan Is Safe?  

The stainless steel pan is one of the most popular frying pans, and for the most part it is generally a safe product to cook with. However, a small percentage of people who may be allergic to nickel, may find this pan to present allergic symptoms. Stainless steel pans "may aggravate the symptoms of [those that have] dermatitis."  

Copper pans are another popular choice. As long as they are lined, and the food is not exposed to the copper, there is no threat to the consumer. If the lining of the pan wears out or gets scratched from wear and tear, the copper leeches through and can cause those using it to become ill. Symptoms from over-exposure to copper include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, to name a few.  

Aluminum pans are not a safe bet when cooking. According to Jethro Kloss, author of Back to Eden, and a leading voice on nutrition, "It [aluminum] flakes off very easily when food is cooked in it." In his book, Mr. Kloss relates his personal experience with aluminum poisoning from pans and utensils. For him, there is little doubt. "Everyone who knows anything about aluminum knows that it is poison," he states.  

Aluminum has also been in the news regarding the environmental damage and poisons exuded into the air from aluminum factories, as well as a possible linkage of Alzheimer's disease, since patients with Alzheimer's show elevated levels of aluminum in their brains. The research being done, however, is still inconclusive.  

In her Native American healing book Earthway, Mary Summer Rain stresses, "never cook in aluminum or copper pans." Her reasons are that the metals enter the food during preparation. "They are deadly," she adds. Mary also adds to her list of dangerous kitchen utensils, the use of a kitchen favorite, aluminum foil. "If you're using aluminum foil to wrap things in- stop it!" Basically the same reasons apply.  

It is also worth noting the potential hazards of aluminum poisons that show up in food, adding more quantities of aluminum to our diet. Sliced cheese singles, infant formula, cake mixes, baking powder, self-rising flour, non-dairy creamer, pickles, not to mention the presence of aluminum in antiperspirants and antacids.  

Teflon

Teflon is another choice of pans that has its risks. First of all, Teflon shavings or flakes that come off during cooking can be hazardous to one's health. Secondly, when heated, a Teflon frying pan emits toxic particles and gases. These gases have for years resulted in numerous pet bird deaths, and an unknown number of human illnesses.

One pet retail associate said, "People call all the time, and tell us their parakeet or parrot looks sick or is very ill. The first thing I ask is, 'do you keep the bird in the kitchen?' They usually say yes, in which case I then ask, 'do you use Teflon pans?' They seem dumbfounded at first, until I explain about the poisonous fumes given off from the pans."  

DuPont, a leading manufacturer of Teflon pans, said in a recent press release, "significant decomposition of the coating will occur only when temperatures exceed about 660 degrees F (340 degrees C)."[1]  DuPont continues to say "human illness will be produced only in cases involving gross overheating, or burning the food to an inedible state." This temperature is "easily exceeded when a pan is preheated on a burner or placed in a broiler, or a self cleaning oven." In fact, "a normal Teflon frying pan reaches 736 degrees F in three minutes and twenty seconds."[2]  

Further evidence suggests that Teflon presents hazards to our air and environment. According to a 2001 study conducted by the scientific magazine Nature, "When heated, Teflon frying pans release substances containing fluorine," which is hard to break down in the environment, and accumulates in the ground and groundwater.  

Is There a Perfect Pan?  

There is one pan that has been reputed as being a benefit to cooking. The cast-iron pan is said to be safe and excellent to cook with, as it can be a source of needed iron in the diet. Mary Summer Rain says, "Cast-iron cookware is recommended because the iron mineral enters the food and benefits the system." Please check over your pans for signs of scratching and peeling. Discard any pans that may pose a threat. With regard to any cooking utensils, bowls or measuring cups that are made from metals follow the same guidelines.  

Other Kitchen Hazards  

There is also a potential risk for those who use plastic containers to cook in a microwave, or to store food or water in. More and more research suggests all types of plastic leech chemicals into the contents it is holding. Specific research suggests containers made from polycarbonate plastic, which is used to manufacture anything from sports bottles to baby bottles, is the one to be concerned with.

Polycarbonate plastic contains a component called bisphenol-A, also known as BPA, which leeches into food and water as the plastic ages. Scientific tests explain that bisphenol-A produces genetic abnormalities, and that plastics in general are far more likely to contribute dangerous types of chemicals to the contents they hold.  

Another study had this to say: "At extremely low levels, BPA promotes fat cell (adipocyte) differentiation and accumulation of lipids in a cell culture line used as a model for adipocyte formation. These two steps, differentiation and accumulation, are crucial in the development of human obesity. Hence this result opens up a whole new chapter in efforts to understand the origins of the worldwide obesity epidemic."[3]  

Are There Any Choices?

According to Allison Sloan, with the International Plastics Task Force, (IPTF), "plastics commonly used for food packaging can leach." She states, "Pyrex-like glass or Corning ware-type ceramics" are safest, and she advises consumers to "avoid heating micro-wavable foods in plastic."  

Plastics are assorted by the recycling code that is most often found on the bottom side of the bowl or bottle. They have been categorized into two categories. The first category includes plastics where conclusive testing has been done to show that they leeched. This includes the polycarbonate plastic mentioned earlier. This category includes recycle #3, which contains "plasticizer", a component thought to cause cancer and other health problems, (includes Reynolds and cling wraps, 64 oz Wesson cooking oil, and Appalachian Mountain Spring water to name a few); #6, which is best known in its inflated form as Styrofoam, and its non-inflated form as disposable cups and bowls; and #7, which includes children's "sippy" cups, 5-gallon water bottles, and even dental sealant.[4]  

Although many feel there are no "safe" plastics, recycle codes #1, #2, #4 and #5 are still available. Glass is a good alternative to plastic.

Preparing Foods

Now that you have the safest cookware and storing containers, it is time to get the most out of preparing your foods. There are many techniques like boiling, baking, frying, and steam-cooking to name a few. Let's look closer.  

Jethro Kloss says to remember that "the four nutrient robbers are air, water, heat and light." His advice is to use as little water as possible while cooking, and to have the water boiling before adding food to prevent the loss of nutrients. Use fresh vegetables whenever possible, and do not leave them exposed to air for too long. "Frozen foods should not be thawed" but placed directly in boiling water.  

Steaming vegetables is the optimal way to keep vitamins in your vegetables. "Cooking by steaming or pressure cooking will preserve about 30 percent more of the vitamins than boiling." Mr. Kloss recommends baking vegetables as an alternative to steaming to ensure quality nutrients and Mary Summer Rain says, "steam all fresh vegetables, this is the only cooking method that retains total nutrient value."  

Using a steam pressure cooker is a quick and easy way to get the best out of food. With a minimal amount of water, "you can put several different foods in the cooker, cook them all at the same time, and each will retain its natural flavor." It also gives you more time in the kitchen to do other things.  

4- Sloan, Allison- "Mothers and Others Magazine" 2003

Sources:

• Berkeley Wellness Letter, Archive March 2002  

• "Dangers of Teflon Pans"- Eco Mall  

• Dery, Monika- "The Dangers of Aluminum Toxicity," August 2003 BellaOnline  

• "Heat Attacks Teflon," Nature July 2001

• Jacobson, Michael F., Lefferts, Lisa Y., Garland, Anne Witte- "Safe Food," Living Planet Press, Los Angeles, 1991

• Journal of Lipid Research 3:676-684- Masuno, H, T Kidani, K Seklya, K Sakayama, T Shiosaka, H Yamamoto and K Honda 2002- "Our Stolen Future"

• Kloss, Jethro- "Back to Eden ," Revised and Expanded 2nd edition, Lotus Press 1999

• Rain, Mary Summer, "Earthway," Pocket Books, New York, 1990

• Sloan, Allison- "Mothers and Others Magazine" 2003

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