Health Zone: Why suya is healthier with beer — Scientists

A group of researchers at the University of Porto, in Portugal, have said that barbecued meat, popularly known as suya, in Nigeria is healthier when cooked and eaten with beer.

The lead author of the study, published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry,  Dr.  Isabel Ferreira, said the recommendation was given following the results  of various experiments conducted by the scientists.

According to Ferreira, cancer-causing chemicals and molecules such as The PAHs are formed through the process of grilling or barbecuing meat and some chemical in beer could neutralise these free radicals.

She said, “One way of stopping PAH-formation might be to apply chemicals called antioxidants that mop up free radicals. And beer is rich in these, in the shape of melanoidins, which form when barley is roasted.”

Ferreira, however, cautioned against over consumption of barbecued meat with beer or other forms of alcohol that may not have been sourced from barley.