Cookware, cooking oils and removing Teflon from the body

Frederic asks about Teflon's toxicity and whether cast iron is the answer.

The Wonders say cast iron is heavy and, if not properly oiled and seasoned, is as bad as Teflon and can lead to ingesting too much iron.

The general principle is to cook over lower heat with a heat-stable fat such as coconut oil; olive oil breaks down quickly but is fine at low heat, and butter is an excellent fat at low heat.

Cooking longer at a lower temperature and covering the frying pan gives the same result with less oil breakdown.

Ceramic pans work but burn easily and cannot take high heat; for high heat nothing beats properly prepared cast iron.

Modern Teflon pans with the coating sealed into the metal are acceptable on medium heat, while old Teflon pans should be thrown out.

They also recommend grilling - a barbecue, a stove grill or an electric grill - as an excellent way to cook without fats.

On removing absorbed Teflon, they say it is very difficult: ordinary EDTA chelation does not do it, only a specialized and very costly chelation that is not really worth it, since Teflon is a chemical or plastic that passes through the body rather than a heavy metal.

Good liver cleanses or master cleanses are the practical way to help the liver process and flush it out.