Is the iron in cast iron pans the kind of iron the body can use?
Iron is just iron. When you buy it in a supplement, if you read the fine print, it will usually tell you the source of iron is “metallic.” That means you are swallowing powdered iron. It has actually become more of a problem for people since they stopped using cast iron cookware, which provided a good source. Healthy men, however, should not take iron supplements because we don’t have any way to eliminate it. The iron in spinach and other green leafy vegetables is combined, but the compounds are broken down by the body, and the iron is absorbed in a form that is useful to it. The chemicals in burnt meat that you are talking about are called nitrosamines. There is indeed some evidence that they can cause cancers in humans. For my part, I try not to let steaks burn to a crisp on the barbecue, but I don’t have them very often because of concerns about cholesterol. There is probably more potential for ha
