Teflon?

[nomayo]

Hello all, I'm new to this forum. I need some help on a topic I've been reading alot about. I've heard that Teflon is very bad for you when placed under high tempuratures. The coating used to make it non-stick realeases a fume that is know to cause cancer. It's also very bad for animals, like small birds or exotic birds. I've also read about reproductive issues and birth defects.

If Teflon is not safe to use than what type of pan should I buy? I'd like to get rid of all of my teflon pans. I've read the best to buy is ceramic coated or sandstone. But I can't seem to find those types of pans at any store. Everything is non-stick even if it doesn't say teflon some pans have warnings about the pans realesing fumes at high temps.



Is stainless steal ok? Or does anybody know where I can get ceramic coated or sandstone pans.

Can anybody point me to a website were I can order Ceramic coated cookware or sandstone cookware. I've done some google searches but haven't really come up with anything that makes me feel confident that I'm buying something safe.

Thanks
Brandon

 

[kleenex]

stainless steal is fine to use.

 

[Andy M.]

When Teflon pans are heated to a too high temperature, the coating gives off fumes that are harmful or fatal to small birds. There is no evidence it has the same effect on humans. No human deaths from overheated Teflon have been reported.

The carcinogen you referred to is used in the Teflon manufacturing process and is not present in the finished product. It is, however, present in other products such as pizza boxes and certain food wrappers to prevent the penetration of grease as well as in waterproof clothing.

You can safely cook with Teflon as long as you avoid overheating. If you choose to switch to stainless steel, that's a good option as well. Look for SS that's either tri-ply with aluminum between layers of SS or pans that have a heavy layered disk attached to the bottom of a SS pan.

 

[GB]

Andy gave you some great info! To build upon what he said, just don't leave an empty non stick pan on the heat for too long. As soon as you put food in the pan the temp will drop into acceptable levels.

 

[Robo410]

ceramic coated...possibly enamled cast iron, like le crueset, lodge enameled, mario batali collection, etc.

soapstone, not sandstone, and not coated but solid...heavy but good and versatile, but requires care and curing. www.fantes.com sells it from brazil.

However, there are lots of other choices too as stated above. where are you looking?? check chefscatalogue.com, check cooking.com check chefreasourse.com, etc you'll find lots of choices.

 

[buckytom]

When Teflon pans are heated to a too high temperature, the coating gives off fumes that are harmful or fatal to small birds. There is no evidence it has the same effect on humans. No human deaths from overheated Teflon have been reported.

The carcinogen you referred to is used in the Teflon manufacturing process and is not present in the finished product. It is, however, present in other products such as pizza boxes and certain food wrappers to prevent the penetration of grease as well as in waterproof clothing.

You can safely cook with Teflon as long as you avoid overheating. If you choose to switch to stainless steel, that's a good option as well. Look for SS that's either tri-ply with aluminum between layers of SS or pans that have a heavy layered disk attached to the bottom of a SS pan.

lol, ya just can't let it go, can ya?

do not keep birds of any size near a kitchen that uses non-stick cookware. peroid!!!!

there have been documented negative health effects on humans, but so far none have proved to be more than just temporary "flu-like" symptoms. these results were based on the cookware staying at relatively normal cooking temps below 600 degrees F. however, a forgotten pan in a self cleaning oven, or a non-stick drip pan may exceed 1000 degrees F, releasing fumes and particulates that are lethal to humans, even in smasll doses.

http://www.ewg.org/reports/toxicteflon/es.php

http://thecoolcook.com/teflon.htm

i don't know about you, but when my son had rsv, then pneumonia, and we were measuring blood oxygen saturation where just a few percentage points from being emergency room bound, we were extremely careful not to overheat our non-stick cookware.

for a while, i guess we ate a lot of mushy food.