Cast iron isn’t completely without risk. The iron from the pan can leach into food which can be a problem for people with high iron issues. On the flip side people with anemia could see some benefit. My personal favorite as someone with hemachromatosis is enameled cast iron.
A properly seasoned cast iron pan has a layer in-between the food and iron. But those layers do get damaged & worn, and you can definitely end up with your food in contact with the iron like you said. I have an enameled dutch oven, and it’s pretty great, but not as easy to clean as the regular cast iron, and definitely not non-stick.
The seasoning layer prevents massive amounts of iron from leeching but seasoned pans still add iron.
Medical journals all say you get significant iron from seasoned cast iron.
The only source that doesn’t agree is America’s test kitchen. They say “only a few mg” which would still be a significant percentage of dietary requirements.
Unless you have a medical problem, this is a good thing.
Yeah, we’ve been using cast iron pans since we saw the movie Deep Waters about the DuPont conspiracy several years ago. I just donated blood a couple of weeks ago and they test your iron before you can donate. My iron levels were perfectly normal. So whatever it does, it’s totally fine.
Cast iron isn’t completely without risk. The iron from the pan can leach into food which can be a problem for people with high iron issues. On the flip side people with anemia could see some benefit. My personal favorite as someone with hemachromatosis is enameled cast iron.
A properly seasoned cast iron pan has a layer in-between the food and iron. But those layers do get damaged & worn, and you can definitely end up with your food in contact with the iron like you said. I have an enameled dutch oven, and it’s pretty great, but not as easy to clean as the regular cast iron, and definitely not non-stick.
The seasoning layer prevents massive amounts of iron from leeching but seasoned pans still add iron.
Medical journals all say you get significant iron from seasoned cast iron.
The only source that doesn’t agree is America’s test kitchen. They say “only a few mg” which would still be a significant percentage of dietary requirements.
Unless you have a medical problem, this is a good thing.
Yeah, we’ve been using cast iron pans since we saw the movie Deep Waters about the DuPont conspiracy several years ago. I just donated blood a couple of weeks ago and they test your iron before you can donate. My iron levels were perfectly normal. So whatever it does, it’s totally fine.