Summer is here, which means that it’s officially grilling season. There’s no better time for cooking fresh grilled veggies, juicy steaks, and burgers. Your grill is definitely going to get a workout, which means that you’ll need to clean it regularly. However, health experts and home cooks alike are putting a major warning on the most common cleaning tool for grills: a wire brush.
A 2023 case review by the American College of Surgeons encouraged greater awareness of consumer safety after multiple reports of injuries from wire grill brushes. Often, the wire bristles can become dislodged and end up in food. Once ingested, these bristles can damage your mouth, throat, and stomach.
Similarly, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported on the dangers of wire bristles in a Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, which dates back to 2012. According to the CDC, “awareness among the public, manufacturers who make wire grill-cleaning brushes, and retailers who sell these products can reduce exposures and decrease the likelihood of further occurrences.”
Still, wire grill brushes are widely used by home cooks. And in a now-viral video on TikTok, a medical professional warned of their life-threatening dangers.
“One of the most interesting cases that I’ve had to date is a four-year-old boy who was at a barbecue eating when he suddenly grabbed his ear and started crying, complaining of ear pain. They brought him to the emergency department, and he had a totally normal exam,” TikTok user @Beachgem10, a pediatric emergency doctor, explained.
After days of constant pain, a CAT scan uncovered that a piece of wire from a grill brush was lodged in the child’s peritonsillar tissue.
“He had been eating a hamburger when this happened, so the grill brush—the metal wires on the grill brush—had become lodged in the hamburger. And when he ate the hamburger, it became lodged in the soft tissues,” @Beachgem10 said.
Other TikTok users shared their own harrowing stories about wire grill brushes. User @melissac120812 wrote, “My son got a grill brush piece stuck in his throat at 1.5 years old, scariest experience of our life.”
But before you avoid grilling altogether, know that there are still plenty of ways to clean your grill without using a wire brush. Delish Food Director Robert Seixas suggests crumpling aluminum foil into a ball and using tongs while the grates are still hot to wipe up any residue. You can also purchase a wire-free grill scraper, like this one from Grill Rescue. We also have plenty of grill cleaning tips to keep the grates in perfect condition all season long.
Happy (and safe) grilling!
