Dr. McDougall's Online Discussion Board

Hi Jeff,
I appreciate your help here to answer important and even silly questions (which this may be).
I was wondering if cooking in cast iron cookware might be bad because of the iron content in the pans.
Thanks for your advice!
Linda

I use cast iron pans when I need to use a skillet. When I was in college a chemistry professor I had told us that if high acids foods are cooked in cast iron (he used an example of spaghetti sauce) that the iron content of the food would increase because of the pan but that it was not a problem with low acid foods. I have remembered that and only used my cast iron skillets for foods such as hash brown. Maybe Jeff has a better answer for us?

Hi Lacey,

Thanks for your post. I was begining to feel foolish for even asking. I am concerned about the iron though since I use it a lot. The point you bring up is somethig I never heard and it would be nice to know if we need to worry about it.
Linda

Zoomer wrote:Hi Jeff,
I appreciate your help here to answer important and even silly questions (which this may be).
I was wondering if cooking in cast iron cookware might be bad because of the iron content in the pans.
Thanks for your advice!
Linda

Hi Linda,

I do not think your question is silly.

Cooking in cast iron pots can increase iron intake as some of the iron leaches into the food.

Excess iron can cause diarrhea, constipation and abdominal discomfort in some people. Excess iron can also be toxic especially for children, though this is usually the result of their ingesting adult supplements.

In addition, some people accumulate iron in thier body tissues due to a hereditary condition called hemochromatosis. This iron accumulation can lead to organ damage, most importantly in the liver, heart and pancreas, resulting in liver failure, heart disease and diabetes mellitus.

Some research indicated that iron may contribute to the oxidation of LDL cholesterol, changing it to a form that is more damaging to coronary arteries.

They are also usually much heavier, which can be an issue for many of our clients

I prefer and recommend stainless steel and ceramic, non-stick.

In Health
Jeff Novick, MS, RD

JeffN wrote:
I prefer and recommend stainless steel and ceramic, non-stick.

In Health
Jeff Novick, MS, RD

Jeff,

Is this tripot type? where the bottom layer may be aluminium for even heating and stainless steel coated with ceramic inside for non stick? If you do have a product link to share will be great for reference. I understand if you dont want.