Q have entered the world of stir frying! Are any of the stir-fry nonstick pans unhealthy to use due to the high heat involved? — S.B., Greenville

A Isn't stir frying fun and wonderful! Once you have prepped the foods, it's only a few minutes until you have healthy, wonderful dishes. I have been using both nonstick and traditional noncoated pans for a long time and, as long as the coating on my pans isn't chipped, I haven't worried about it. But you and others have asked me the question about safety recently, so I have asked my colleague, Dr. Carolyn Lackey at the North Carolina Extension Service, to help locate some legitimate information for us.

Lackey found that questions have been raised about the safety of nonstick cookware, mostly because of environmental concerns about perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) — also known as C-8 — a chemical used to bond the nonstick coating to the pan. One company that uses it says the PFOA is destroyed during manufacturing and isn't present afterward.

PFOA is thought to be a carcinogen, a substance known to cause cancer in animals or humans. Even though there is no data to blame nonstick cookware, earlier this year, the Environmental Protection Agency asked American companies to work over the next nine years towards the elimination of PFOA. Last month, many companies voluntarily agreed to eliminate it by 2015.

Animal studies with high doses of the chemical link it to cancer, low birth weight and a suppressed immune system. Further studies have shown that most Americans have low levels of PFOA in their blood. Some experts also think there is a link between PFOA and high cholesterol.

The experts would seem to agree that above certain temperatures — hotter than the smoke point of cooking oils or the point where food is burned — the nonstick coating breaks down and releases toxic fumes. Nonstick cookware usually comes with a recommendation of not using it above 500 degrees. This probably happens most if the cookware is left dry or empty on a hot burner.

I have a subscription to Cook's Illustrated magazine, which often runs features in which they test different kinds of cookware or equipment. Last year the magazine reported on nonstick skillets and reported that extreme temperatures could be reached by cooking some foods on high heat, such as stir-frying. In most cases, the really high temperature registered for a couple of seconds and dropped as food was stirred.

Having read the information, I am going to still use my nonstick cookware. I think the benefits of using little or no fat in cooking far outweigh the risks of developing cancer from this source. I will make sure I don't leave a nonstick pan unattended on a burner, and that I cook at less than 450 degrees. I will not use metal utensils on the nonstick surface and will wash the cookware gently.

I am not an expert on the environment, so I can't comment on any effects this substance might have there.

Q Several of my friends have gotten their ears stapled to help them lose weight. Do you know anything about this process, and is there anything legit about it? — B.J., Greenville

A I think if I keep working long enough, I will see every weight-loss fad or strategy come around again. I know ear stapling was popular in the 1970s and maybe again in the 1980s, and here it is again. I have had patients with their jaws wired lose weight, but that condition, of course, made it more difficult to get food and drinks into the person. I suppose if the staple reminded you not to eat or drink to excess, or jogged your memory to exercise, it could help. I asked Rebecca Rawl, the food literacy partner's graduate assistant, to double check the scientific literature for me. She said she tried every combination of terms for stapling — even acupuncture and acupressure — with weight loss, and came up with exactly zero articles on the subject at PubMed, the online archive of the National Library of Medicine and National Institutes of Health.

Rebecca is completing her master's in public health this spring, and she wanted to remind readers that ear piercing (including ear stapling) and body piercing are not regulated in North Carolina. So, take care that the place you get stapled practices good sanitation practices, or you run increased risk of developing hepatitis or infection.

I want to thank Rebecca for her dedication to the Food Literacy Partners Program. For the last two years, she has helped enroll and teach volunteers. She has made the job of the instructors a lot easier by getting the materials prepared, and she has supported our online course. We wish her the best as she enters the Brody School of Medicine as a member of the class of 2010.

Professor Kathy Kolasa, a registered dietitian and Ph.D., works with the Family Medicine Center, Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University. She may be contacted at kolasaka@ecu.edu, or in care of The Daily Reflector, P.O. Box 1967, Greenville, NC 27835.