Pancreatic cancer: this gesture in the kitchen could change everything
We savor it from the first days of sun, during large family tables or summer evenings. Its smell evokes the holidaysconviviality, simplicity. However, this very popular food could well hide an insidious threat. Not by its nature … but by the way it is prepared.
In recent years, doctors and researchers have been ringing the alarm: Certain cooking processes expose chemical compounds capable of disturbing human DNA. Result: land more favorable to the appearance of certain cancers, including pancreatic cancer, one of the most formidable by its discretion and its speed of progression.
In a study published in March 2025 in the Journal of Food Processing and Preservationresearchers point out that The frequency of these high temperature cooks is correlated at an increased risk of pancreatic tumor. And this is not a detail: according to Public Health France, this cancer affects more than 15,000 new cases each year, with a 5 -year survival rate of less than 10 %.
Burnt meat and pancreatic cancer: a link now confirmed
It is now proven: grilled, burned or charred meat is A direct source of heterocyclic amines (AHC) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (HAP). These compounds form when the meat – red or white – is cooked at very high temperature, in direct contact with a flame or on an overheated grid.
According to Dr. Sermed Mezher, relayed by Daily Mail and several medical press titles, These substances can alter the DNA of cells and inhibit their repairtypical mechanisms of tumor processes.
The consequences do not only concern the pancreas: according to several epidemiological studies, these excessive cooking are also associated with an increase in the risk of cancer of the prostate, the colon and the small intestine.
The most striking is that These compounds are invisible, undergroundand are formed without the consumer’s knowledge, as soon as meat blackens or has crisp crusts from direct heat.
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Invisible but very real: toxins from grilled meat are directly involved in the increase in the risk of pancreatic cancer.
Digestive cancer: other foods that promote pancreas tumors
The burned meat is not alone on the hot seat. Dr. Mezher recalls that several daily foods, when transformed or poorly cooked, can generate harmful substances. Experts alert:
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Transformed meats (sausages, ham, bacon): classified carcinogenic of group 1 by the WHO because of their nitrites and nitrates which form N-Nitroso compounds in the intestine.
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The grilled carbohydrates (fries, chips, toasted bread, blown cereals): Rich in acrylamide, a molecule formed during high temperature cooking, also linked to carcinogenic risks.
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Alcohol, even in moderate consumptionis metabolized in acetaldehyde, toxic substance known to damage cellular DNA and promote digestive cancers, ENT or breast.
These observations are part of a worrying context: according to data from the French and British health authorities, digestive cancers among those under 50 have been up for 10 years.
How to limit the risk of pancreatic cancer without changing all your diet
Modifying your diet does not mean depriving yourself, but rather making more enlightened and less risky choices. Public health experts offer several simple levers to set up on a daily basis:
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Favor sweet cooking: steam, simmered, low temperature or water baking oven
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Avoid direct cooking on the flame: especially at the barbecue or on an overheated pan
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Use marinades (lemon, olive oil, herbs) before cooking, which reduce the formation of toxic substances
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Limit meat transformed to occasional consumption
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Avoid excessive browning of carbohydrates (toast, potatoes, golden golden cookies)
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Reduce alcohol consumption, even outside excess
These simple gestures make it possible to reduce the exposure to mutagenic agents without giving up moments of conviviality. The stake: to put a little conscience on our plate, to combine culinary pleasure and sustainable prevention.
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With a survival rate of less than 10 %, pancreatic cancer remains one of the most aggressive and silent of the digestive system.
