# Smoke meat and cancer?



## muka (Nov 22, 2017)

I'm sure this was discussed but I cannot find any post on it.
Someone sent me an article about Smoked Meat linking to cancer. What do you guys think? I was just getting in the groove until I saw this article.


----------



## hondabbq (Nov 22, 2017)

Were all gonna die. die happy.


----------



## daveomak (Nov 22, 2017)

Can you link the article....


----------



## myownidaho (Nov 22, 2017)

Nothing new. The same has been said about grilled meat, even though man has been eating it for millennia. My motto has always been, “everything in moderation, including moderation”.


----------



## Rings Я Us (Nov 22, 2017)

Most articles reference fat drippings on charcoal  burning and charred foods.  improper fuels, use of lighter fluids and stuff to light charcoal. The added sodium or nitrate in your diet.
 The bulk of the articles say to limit sodium and charred foods. Use proper fuels from good sources and use proper safe cooking techniques.


----------



## muka (Nov 22, 2017)

http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/dangers-eating-smoked-meat-10162.html


----------



## daveomak (Nov 22, 2017)

San Francisco Area news...  You, being from Texas, "could" have second thoughts about their articles...

I'm going out on a limb here by guessing....   Texans eat more BBQ than Californians...

*Texas* as a whole is well below the national average in *cancer* deaths, with 158.6 deaths per 100,000 population compared to 174 per 100,000 for the United States.

California  is slightly lower than Texas...


----------



## tallbm (Nov 22, 2017)

I agree with the post about moderation.

Too much alcohol can give you liver cancer, yet a glass of wine a day may be beneficial.
Too much red meat may give you colon cancer, yet it is great for iron and protein.
Too much sun can give you skin cancer, yet you need it for vitamin D production.

All within moderation, and all should be good my friend :)


----------



## Rings Я Us (Nov 22, 2017)

All kinds of info in those articles. But they don't say numbers and statistics. EATING VELVEETA MAC AND CHEESE AND BURNT TOAST IS WORSE .


----------



## GATOR240 (Nov 22, 2017)

Rings Я Us said:


> All kinds of info in those articles. But they don't say numbers and statistics. EATING VELVEETA MAC AND CHEESE AND BURNT TOAST IS WORSE .





I only did the smoked Velveeta mac and cheese once!!!!


----------



## muka (Nov 22, 2017)

I agree, eat smoked meat in moderation is OK.


----------



## gmc2003 (Nov 22, 2017)

If your into CLA's then Velveeta is better for you then whole milk cheddar's. Unfortunately it's also higher in preservatives and sodium. 

Chris


----------



## hoity toit (Nov 22, 2017)

daveomak said:


> San Francisco Area news...  You, being from Texas, "could" have second thoughts about their articles...
> 
> I'm going out on a limb here by guessing....   Texans eat more BBQ than Californians...
> 
> ...


 Yep.We eat BBQ about once or twice a week.(in Texas) at least i do.
HT


----------



## Rings Я Us (Nov 22, 2017)

GATOR240 said:


> I only did the smoked Velveeta mac and cheese once!!!!



Haha..  well I saw a recipe the other day with a whole pound of Velveeta and like a stick of butter. I saw how many calories and how much sodium in it and was in shock. :eek:..  Was really high.. it said served 6 and it really looked fatty . It's just meant to eat once in a while.. no biggy for most people.


----------



## Rings Я Us (Nov 22, 2017)

It's a blanket statement when they say smoked meats.. they keep tossing in charred and seared food on grills and meats cooked over coals in with smoked meat. Not what I do in the ECB at all.. They add in all this crap about nitrates and nitrites being bad.. But we know that we use safe limits of those to cure.. You don't gourge on that stuff .. we all know not to over induldge. Everyone should know to use good quality fuels to cook with.
Those articles all mention family history and this factor and that factor Or .. this study and that study.. They fail to say it's 3,000 times safer than smoking Or it has 200 x less than this green vegetable has that we all eat.. Or that water in bottles is allowed to have more of this and that than processed foods.. Bunch of stats they can toss out and twist around to try and make their point..
Ridiculous garbage if you read into it.


----------



## GATOR240 (Nov 22, 2017)

Like someone said earlier....moderation is the key.


----------



## noboundaries (Nov 22, 2017)

Earlier this past summer I was taking a 14 week weight-loss class held by my medical insurance provider.  Wasn't really learning anything new, but I'd pick up a few jewels of insight and it got me out of the house to someplace other than the grocery store. 

The nutritionist teaching the class, a vegetarian, did a great job of not condemning anyone's food choices until one of the other guys in the class brought up smoking and grilling meat.  She said "each bite of smoked, grilled, or processed meat is no different than smoking a cigarette."  It took every ounce of self-discipline I possessed to keep from saying something unprintable here. 

I thought about getting up and walking out of class, but it wouldn't prove anything.  I even thought about venting here on the forum, but why sing to the choir.  I came up with a better idea.  Each time she asked us how we were managing our eating, I talked about how many fewer calories I was consuming by grilling, smoking, and processing my own meat.  She never again repeated the cigarette comparison, but I saw the thought slam into the back of her face time and time again.


----------



## GATOR240 (Nov 22, 2017)

I guess I'm really in trouble then, as I love smoking foods as often as I can and I've been a firefighter for 30+ years!


----------



## daveomak (Nov 22, 2017)

GATOR240 said:


> I guess I'm really in trouble then, as I love smoking foods as often as I can and I've been a firefighter for 30+ years!




Fortunately for you.....  every smoky breath you take while on duty, negates every smoky hunk of meat you eat...   You are good for 1,000 years my friend, and thank you for your service to your community...


----------



## uncle eddie (Nov 22, 2017)

I bet the article was written by a vegan who is a member of PETA.

My organization, also called PETA (People Eating Tasty Animals) calls the article for what it is - a broad generalization.  There were no numbers.


----------



## chef jimmyj (Nov 23, 2017)

You die when your numbers up! Mom started smoking cigarettes at 14. Most of her life she smoked a pack a day, two if there was socializing. The first 30 years she ate Smoked and Preserved meats because after the annual hog slaughter, that was what there was other than chickens on their small farm. Mom's weight was never under 200 pounds after the first birth, me, and by 50 had mild diabetes and high blood pressure managed with meds. Her favorite food was anything Sweet especially Donuts, Goodies she called them and preferred a donut or two with coffee for supper over a steak dinner. Mom passed just shy of her 90th birthday from complications stemming from Hip Surgery. She was buried with a pack of cigarettes and a dozen donuts.
My daughters best friend was a guy she went to high school with. John was a Football player and ran Cross Country Track. He didn't smoke, take drugs or drink. He followed a low fat diet high in vegetables using very little salt. John loved my Smoked Ribs. At 23 years old he died of a massive Stroke for no apparent reason. Just fell over eating breakfast and in mid conversation with his mother.
In the 90's Eggs would kill you quicker than a bullet. Now, eggs are AGAIN considered a complete protein loaded with vitamins and mineral and darn near a Super Food. I refuse to put any value on studies that state that which we know from a millennium of consumption is perfectly fine to eat, suddenly is a killer food to be avoided at all cost...JJ


----------



## GATOR240 (Nov 23, 2017)

daveomak said:


> Fortunately for you.....  every smoky breath you take while on duty, negates every smoky hunk of meat you eat...   You are good for 1,000 years my friend, and thank you for your service to your community...




Oh COOL!!!!!! There for a minute I was contemplating playing it safe today and not doing the double smoked ham (NOT!) -    Thank you Sir

Denny


----------



## BBQlover81 (Oct 8, 2018)

My wife was recently telling me to smoke less meat because of the health concerns. Just got my smoker at the start of the summer, and at my peak, I was smoking meat once a week. 

She was concerned about the health impacts (whole family was eating the meat, including the kids), so I've agreed to do it every 2 weeks at the most. 

I do cook meat on the grill weekly though (don't burn it)


----------



## daveomak (Oct 8, 2018)

Since "man" found fire, all his meals were cooked in a smoky environment... And he slept in a smoky cave...  I thought that would have made him extinct due to the cancers from the fire and all the meat he ate....  I guess some stories are wives tales from the vegan press...


----------



## chef jimmyj (Oct 8, 2018)

I come from a Polish family of Butchers. Smoked meat has been eaten at least once a day, usually twice a day for generations. The average life span is 85 years, two of my Aunts that are well into their 90's and are in independant living homes. And NOBODY is Skinny!...JJ


----------



## GaryHibbert (Oct 8, 2018)

I drank like a fish up til 3 years ago.  I've smoked cigarettes for 55 years, since I was 15 (2 packs a day for 15 years) and eat smoked everything almost daily.  No cancer.
My little brother quit smoking 30 years ago, drank responsibly, and ate very little smoked meat.
Cancer killed him last year.
It's not what you eat, it's just the luck of the draw.
Gary


----------



## dward51 (Oct 8, 2018)

Ummmm..... You do know there are more nitrates and nitrites in green leafy vegetables than there are in "cure", right?  Why do you think all those "uncured" meat products in the store have "all natural with no cure added" and the asterix of except those naturally occurring in celery juice.

Most people get more nitrates & nitrites from salads and other vegetables than they do from those evil smoked and grilled meats.


----------



## uncle eddie (Oct 9, 2018)

Still staying with my original post - Militant Vegan news

You should read some of her articles on recommended things to eat - bottom line - her dining life has no joy.  So sad.


----------

