NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Adding a dash of rosemary extract to ground beef appears to reduce the amount of cancer-causing compounds created during the cooking process, according to new study findings.The investigators found that when they added antioxidants extracted from rosemary to ground beef, the hamburgers contained smaller amounts of heterocyclic amines, or HCAs, carcinogenic compounds that form when muscle meats like beef, pork and poultry are cooked at high temperatures.Study author Dr. J. Scott Smith of Kansas State University in Manhattan explained that the antioxidants in rosemary are also found in smaller amounts in other spices such as oregano, sage and basil. The antioxidants likely reduce HCAs by blocking the chemical process that creates the cancer-causing compounds, Smith noted.
