Dangerous carcinogen found in fast-food chicken

In response, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) has filed a law suit that aims to make the restaurants warn consumers of the risk of eating their products.

The restaurants involved include McDonald’s, Burger King, Chick-fil-A, Chili’s, Applebee’s, Outback Steakhouse, and TGI Friday’s.

PCRM commissioned an independent laboratory to test grilled chicken products from California outlets of all seven chains. PhIP was found in every grilled chicken sample from each restaurant where samples were collected.

PhIP is one of a group of carcinogenic compounds called heterocyclic amines (HCAs) that are found in grilled meat. In 2005, the federal government officially added HCAs to its list of carcinogens, and PhIP has been on the California governor’s list of chemicals known to cause cancer for more than a decade.

“Grilled chicken can cause cancer, and consumers deserve to know that this supposedly healthy product is actually…bad for them,” says PCRM president Neal Barnard. “Even a grilled chicken salad increases the risk of breast cancer, prostate cancer, and other forms of this lethal disease.”