title: Cooking of meat and fish in Europe--results from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC).
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  There is epidemiologic evidence that the consumption of fried, grilled or barbecued meat and fish that are well-done or browned may be associated with an increased cancer risk. These high-temperature cooking methods are thought to be surrogates for mutagens and carcinogens produced in meat and fish, eg heterocyclic amines or polycyclic hydrocarbons. Since data on food cooking methods are scarce, the aim of this study was to describe the variation in meat and fish cooking methods in different parts of Europe.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using a standardized 24 h recall from a sub-sample of the EPIC cohort (35 644 persons, 35-75 y old), mean daily intake of meat and fish prepared by different cooking methods and the relative contribution of the cooking methods to the overall cooking of meat and fish was calculated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Whereas frying was more often noted in northern Europe, roasting and stir frying were more often used in the south. Concerning high-temperature cooking methods, their frequency of application varies between 15% in the EPIC cohort of North-Italy and 49% in the cohort of The Netherlands. Average consumption of fried, grilled and barbecued meat and fish ranges from a low of 12 g/day in the centres in southern Spain to a high of 91 g/day in northern Spain.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  High variation in both the kind of meat/fish consumed as well as its cooking methods is observed within EPIC. In order to use this variation for the evaluation of the impact of cooking methods on cancer risk, a questionnaire on meat and fish cooking methods is being developed and could be applied in the whole EPIC cohort.
authors.affiliation: Division of Clinical Epidemiology, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, Heidelberg, Germany. srohrmann@jhsph.edu
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rohrmann
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Linseisen
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Becker
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Norat
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sinha
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Skeie
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lund
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Martínez
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Barricarte
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Mattisson
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Berglund
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Welch
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Davey
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Overvad
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tjønneland
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Clavel-Chapelon
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kesse
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lotze
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Klipstein-Grobusch
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Vasilopoulou
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Polychronopoulos
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Pala
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Celentano
authors.forename: H B
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Bueno-De-Mesquita
authors.forename: P H M
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Peeters
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Riboli
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Slimani
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000588:Amines; D000818:Animals; D002273:Carcinogens / Q000009:adverse effects*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003296:Cooking / Q000379:methods*; D005060:Europe; D005260:Female; D005399:Fishes; D006571:Heterocyclic Compounds; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008460:Meat; D011939:Mental Recall; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D000588:Amines; D002273:Carcinogens; D006571:Heterocyclic Compounds