Unexpected Dangers of Instant Soup
For those of us who are a little short on time and aren’t able to take the time required to cook and eat healthy meals, instant noodles and soups are an option that have become pretty popular recently. This is because they’re both quick to make and an inexpensive option. Although the people eating them aren’t under the impression they’re a healthy option, they do tend towards thinking they’re healthier than chips, burgers or other junk food.
Despite that, one thing people don’t often know is that instant noodles and soups aren’t necessarily a good alternative to junk food. Studies conducted by Dr. Braden Kuo at the Massachusetts General Hospital have indicated that these food products tend to have a negative impact on the body. Today, we’re going to be talking about some unexpected dangers of instant soups and noodles. If you’re interested, keep on reading!
Your body finds digesting instant noodles difficult
During studies conducted on this type of food, it was discovered that instant noodles remain in the stomach, fully intact, two hours after eating them. This is a significantly longer period of time compared to other foods such as homemade noodles. This long time can seriously impact your digestion, and thus it creates a concern.
A prominent concern here is putting a lot of strain and tension on the digestive system, this is because it has to work hard for hours to digest this sort of processed food. When food remains in your digestive tract for a long period of time, it can have an impact on your body’s ability to absorb nutrients. However, this sort of processed food won’t contain a lot of nutrients, rather being full of a long list of additives. Some of this can contain a toxic element called butylhydroquinone (TBHQ).
In all likelihood, this additive stays within the stomach alongside the noodles. Unfortunately, this means it’s able to potentially cause serious health problems during the period of time it takes your body to digest the noodles.
Just 5 grams of TBHQ can prove lethal
If you aren’t familiar with the tertiary butylhydroquinone (TBHQ) preservative actually is, let us give you an explanation. In short, TBHQ is a by-product of petroleum; often on labels, it will be labelled as an “antioxidant”, but don’t allow that to fool you. Unlike the natural, body beneficial antioxidants that you want to eat more of, these should be avoided. All these synthetic chemicals do is prevent the oxidation of fats and oils in the food, which increases the shelf life of processed foods, and keeps them “good” for longer. There’s no real benefit for your body at all.
TBHQ can be found in the vast majority of food on the shelves of your local supermarket, regardless of the brands you’re buying your food from. In addition to food products, TBHQ can also be found in nail varnishes and lacquers, insecticides, makeup and even perfume, to help stop it evaporating so fast and make the make up more stable.
Food additive experts have discovered that the human body is capable of dealing with small doses of TBHQ, but frighteningly, they have determined that just five grams of TBHQ can prove lethal to humans. The Dictionary of Food Additives states that even one gram of this additive is capable of causing symptoms like nausea and vomiting, tinnitus like ringing in the ears, a feeling of asphyxiation, delirium and if that wasn’t enough, even more.
There are links between instant soups and metabolic syndrome
A study published recently in the Journal of Nutrition has shown that, regardless of other eating habits and exercise patterns, women who consume high amounts of instant noodles and soup are at a higher risk of developing metabolic syndrome when compared to those who eat less.
This study determined that women consuming instant noodles and soups twice a week had a 68% higher risk of developing metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome can lead to many serious diseases, such as obesity, arterial hypertension, a high blood sugar level, triglycerides, and low levels of “good” cholesterol, HDL. Additionally, those who were consuming a higher amount of instant soup were discovered to have lower levels of nutrients that are important to our bodies, such as calcium, protein, iron, phosphorous, potassium, Vitamins A and C in comparison to those who were not eating it. They also had high levels of bad fats and sodium, and generally higher calorie intake.
Eating a healthy diet is essential to good health
Although eating instant soups and noodles isn’t going to completely ruin your health, consuming these foods in large quantities can present itself as serious health problems in the future. By choosing fresher foods, which are all natural and much more beneficial for your body, you can help to avoid serious health problems. If you can, try and cut out processed foods from your diet! This is easiest to achieve if you plan your meals ahead of time, and follow your plan properly through the week.
