Sunday, 27 September 2009

• Teflon for Lunch? Diner Beware

  
  

  
  When we were making lunch earlier this week, we noticed that the pan we were using – less than 6 months old – was getting chips in the Teflon.
  
  We were trying to make a sauce, but it was nasty because you could see the chips floating in the milk. After changing the pans, my husband took over and forgot to turn the noodles off and went ahead and added the sauce. It tasted terrible. You could taste this odd taste and find black chips in it!
  
  Needless to say, we didn't end up eating that lunch. I remember going to a cooking show and having them lecture me about how you shouldn't use Teflon because it wasn't good for your digestive system when it inevitably chipped off. Of course they were trying to sell you some new pots and pans. I decided to do a little research of my own.
  
  Now, about 70% of the cookware sold in the U.S. has some sort of nonstick coating, according to the Cookware Manufacturers Association. According to a Dupont representative Dan Turner ,there is no problem with it. Of course, it is their product, and if one thing went wrong the U.S. cooking industry would change as we know it, at least as far as pots and pans are concerned.
  
  According to the EPA, low levels of the chemical perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, is in the blood of 90% of Americans. However, representative Susan Hazen didn't think that the cookware was necessarily the culprit. This chemical can be found through some tests run by the FDA, but the studies aren't really given too much weight because really aren't realistic as they actually had to grind the surface of the pan to find small traces of the chemical. They don't really know what kinds of issues low dosages of this chemical have on humans as they have only done tests on lab animals and in high dosages.
  
  I found a good article with some hints on how to avoid problems with this chemical. Here are some of the highlights:
  
  · Don’t overheat it! PFOA gas can be released if the pot is heated above 600 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s easy to do if you put a pan on to heat and forget it.
  
  · Don’t use metal utensils. Even though non-stick coatings are much more durable now than 20 years ago, it’s still easy to damage the coating.
  
  · Don’t submerse hot cookware in cold water. That can also damage the coating because the temperature extremes destabilize the surface.
  
  · Replace cookware that’s scratched or flaking. That probably goes without saying. Cooking with Teflon is one thing; actually eating it is entirely different!
  
  Watch the stores for more PFOA free pots and pans and be sure to pay attention to what is happening to your food if you cook off of Teflon pans.
  
  Have you ever noticed this happen to you before? What kinds of cooking surface do you prefer? Do you plan on dumping your Teflon and buying one of the many alternatives?

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