The Scariest Thing Ever Could Be Lurking in Your Burger

Burgers, I'm sure you've been told, aren't the best food choice if you're looking to improve your heart health, cut back on sodium, slim down, or manage cholesterol. (Though sometimes, you've just gotta indulge.) 

But there's another terrifying reason you might want to think twice before putting another patty in your mouth, and it's got absolutely nothing to do with the nutritional profile of the meat slab between that sesame bun.

A new report published today in the journal Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery says that over 1,690 Americans were rushed to emergency rooms between 2002 and 2014 thanks to medical complications from having ingested wire bristles unintentionally embedded in grilled meat products.

The wire bristles had apparently broken off from the brushes commonly used to clean grills, griddles, and all other preparatory devices for cooking your favorite burger options.

Mouths, throats, and tonsils across the United States were the most common areas of bristle-induced agony, according to the studies. But abdominal injuries (including internal piercings of the stomach) were also listed among the "affected" areas.

Like this Connecticut woman, who ingested a burger-embedded bristle and ... well, watch what happened:

C.W. David Chang, MD, the study's lead author, pointed out in a press release that a huge risk factor for wire bristle injuries is that most people don't think to inspect burgers they're biting into for any strange objects. Since, you know, you'd assume that wouldn't be a thing you'd have to do. Chang also acknowledges that the number of cases his study lists is probably a low estimate of how many wire-bristle injuries happen in a given year. "The issue is likely under reported and thus underappreciated," Chang admitted.

What's a helpless burger-lover to do about all this? 1. Take a much closer look at that patty before you take an enormous bite — and possibly take smaller bites, just to be safe. 2. Don't be shy about spitting out something extremely sharp and not chewable into your napkin.

If you're the one grilling? Keep your barbecue friends (and yourself) out of the hospital by triple-checking your grill for any lingering bristles that made their way off the brush you used. Or, like the press release recommends, consider alternative approaches to cleaning your grill.