BBQ Warnings: Food For Thought

It's officially barbecue season and you know what that means: steaks, chicken, hot dogs, hamburgers and all that other good stuff, sizzled to perfection on a hot grill under a hot sun.

It all seems so perfect and can be, but if you're not careful it could be your personal health raked over the coals instead of your favourite foods.

It's all pretty basic, but making sure you clean hands and surfaces, separate raw food from cooked, cook everything on the grill thoroughly and chill all leftovers to at least 4C as soon as they become leftovers will go a long way to keeping you healthy.

"The bacteria that can be generated can make you really sick," warns BBQ Gourmet co-owner Martin Buckingham.

And as for keeping your barbecue unit in good shape, the key is cleaning it regularly. If it's a charcoal grill change the briquettes and clean the surface, but if you have a gas grill that's not quite enough.

"Spiders crawl into the tube, they cause a web, it causes a backup and it goes 'ka-boom' because all the gas is building up," said Kevin Turner from The BBQ Guys.

Here are a few good links to check out to make sure you don't go cold on the "hot" topic.

(Don't make yourself sick)

Healthy Ontario 
U.S. Department Of Agriculture 
Medicine Net 
Interior Health

(Don't blow yourself up)

Staying Alive
Safety Info
Fire Service
Kanetix

Barbecued Foods: Friend or Foe?



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