Before you bust out that apron and spatula, brush up on your knowledge: Grilling blunders can cause up to $27 million in property damage and thousands of hospital visits a year.

Take our true-false quiz to see if your skills are up to par.

Q: What is a healthy snack that won’t interfere with my weight loss goals? I really like a type of trail mix that contains assorted nuts, raisins and M&Ms. But the calorie count still seems high: One-fourth of a cup has 150 calories (70 from fat, or 8 grams). It has no trans fat, 3 grams of fiber, 10 grams of sugar and 14 grams of carbs.

A: The point of snacking is to provide calories between meals to infuse your body with a steady supply of energy. If you can get in key nutrients, too, all the better. A good snack is one that provides vitamins, minerals and enough calories to fuel up and curb hunger so that you don’t binge later.

Why heat your house to enjoy a healthy meal when you can fire up wholesome meals on your grill? Grilling meats and vegetables adds loads of flavor without extra calories. You may be concerned about reports connecting grilling with cancer, but you needn’t worry about that unless you eat huge, blackened steaks for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Instead, your biggest concern with grilling is making sure that you use good food safety techniques to prevent food-borne illness.

3 Rules for Perfect Burgers

1. Grind it out

Start with a hunk of chuck or brisket and have your butcher grind it fresh. "Make sure they use the medium grind this will give you a juicy, moist burger," says Hubert Keller, executive chef at Burger Bar in Las Vegas.

Q: Does grilling cause cancer? My husband loves to barbeque meat, but I've heard that it can promote cancer. Should we be concerned?

A: It all depends on how you cook it. Prevention's Dr. Andrew Weil explains:

Picnics are a wonderful part of summer, but the foods that make up traditional picnic fare are rarely in step with what experts consider examples of good nutrition. With some updating, however, picnics can be an example of nutrition at its most delicious.