Is there a way to improve the healthiness of red meat?
The connection between our diet and overall health is well known. Different types of food can either increase or decrease our chances of developing various diseases.
Recent research suggests that the method of food preparation may also significantly influence our risk of developing cancer.
A team of scientists at Stanford University in the U.S. has uncovered reasons why consuming foods regularly cooked at high temperatures, such as red meat or deep-fried meals, might lead to the development of the disease.
Their study, appearing in ACS Central Science, revealed that elements of DNA damaged by heat can be absorbed during the process of digestion and integrated into the eater’s own DNA.
This integration can cause direct harm to the eater’s DNA, potentially inducing genetic alterations that may eventually cause cancer and other health conditions.
Although the research primarily observed the uptake of heat-damaged DNA elements and increased DNA damage in lab-grown cells and mice, the researchers suspect similar effects could occur in humans.
In a statement issued by the university, the lead researcher of the study, Eric Kool, stated: “We have shown that cooking can damage DNA in food, and have discovered that consumption of this DNA may be a source of genetic risk.
“Building upon these findings could really change our perceptions of food preparation and food choices.”
Just as the foods we consume come with nutrients like vitamins, minerals, fats, proteins, and carbohydrates, they also carry the DNA of the organisms they originate from.
The quantity of this DNA in our meals is considerable.
To illustrate, a beef steak weighing 500 grams would comprise more than one gram of bovine DNA.
This implies that the likelihood of humans consuming heat-damaged DNA is not insignificant.
As part of the research the team cooked minced beef, minced pork, and potatoes in two different ways – either boiling them for 15 minutes or roasting them for 20 minutes at set temperatures.
It was found that all three foods exhibited DNA damage when boiled and roasted, and higher temperatures increased DNA damage in nearly all instances.
Even just boiling – a relatively low cooking temperature – still resulted in some DNA damage.
For unknown reasons, the potatoes incurred less DNA damage at higher temperatures than meat.
A solution containing the heat-damaged DNA was then fed to the mice and exposed to the lab-grown cells.
The cells showed significant DNA damage resulting from taking up heat-damaged DNA components.
Among the mice, DNA damage appeared mainly in the cells lining the small intestine due to the fact that’s where most food digestion takes place.
The team now plans to run tests on other types of foods with different food preparation methods.
Future, long-term studies on the effect on humans could also be conducted.
“Our study raises a lot of questions about an entirely unexplored, yet possibly substantial chronic health risk from eating foods that are grilled, fried, or otherwise prepared with high heat,” said Kool.
“We don’t yet know where these initial findings will lead, and we invite the wider research community to build upon them.”
“Our research brings forth numerous questions about a potentially significant, but so far unexplored, chronic health risk related to consuming food items that are grilled, fried, or otherwise prepared at high temperatures,” Kool stated.
“It is still uncertain where these preliminary findings will take us, and we encourage the broader scientific community to expand on them.”
The results of the study raise “a lot of questions about an entirely unexplored, yet possibly substantial chronic health risk from eating foods that are grilled, fried, or otherwise prepared with high heat,” remarked Kool.
“We don’t yet know where these initial findings will lead, and we invite the wider research community to build upon them.”
Image Credit: Shutterstock