| About 90% of the American household food budget is | | | | Excessive Sodium |
| spent on buying processed foods. Processed foods | | | | - Processed foods often contain very high levels of |
| have attractive packaging; they are fast and | | | | sodium. Salt (sodium chloride) helps prevent spoiling by |
| convenient to use and have a much longer shelf-life | | | | drawing moisture out of food, so bacteria can't grow. |
| than fresh foods. For those who don't cook or are not | | | | Salt also kills existing bacteria that might cause spoiling. |
| good at cooking, it's very tempting to head down the | | | | Salt makes soups more savory, reduces dryness in |
| supermarket aisles and pick up some processed | | | | crackers and pretzels, and increases sweetness in |
| foods as they offer a convenient solution to your | | | | cakes and cookies. Salt also helps disguise metallic or |
| modern day time-crunched lifestyle. | | | | chemical aftertastes in products such as soft drinks. |
| What Are Processed Foods and What's In It? | | | | - The Recommended Daily Allowance for sodium is no |
| Processed foods usually come in bags, cans, jars, or | | | | more than 2,400 mg per day, about one teaspoon of |
| boxes. They are fresh foods that have gone through | | | | salt. People with high blood pressure should limit their |
| processing methods such as canning, freezing, | | | | daily intake to less than 1,500 mg. Americans, on |
| refrigeration, dehydration, or aseptic processing. Unlike | | | | average, take in between 4,000-5,000 mg every day, |
| fresh foods which are usually single ingredient items, | | | | mostly from processed foods. |
| processed foods often contain a long list of ingredients | | | | - When you eat more salt than your body needs, your |
| on the label, many of which you can't even pronounce. | | | | body retains fluid simply to dilute the extra sodium in |
| Most processed foods are laden with sweeteners, | | | | your bloodstream, this raises blood volume, forcing |
| salt, artificial flavors, factory-created fats, food coloring, | | | | your heart to work harder. At the same time, it makes |
| chemicals that alter texture, and preservatives. The | | | | your veins and arteries constrict. The combination |
| reason why so much "junk" has to be added to | | | | results in an increase in blood pressure. |
| processed foods is because the processing methods | | | | - Therefore, read product labels for sodium content. |
| strip the nutrients away and change the color and | | | | Try to opt for low-sodium or sodium-free products. |
| texture of the foods. As a result, manufacturers need | | | | Other Harmful Food Additives |
| to add the chemicals to enhance the looks and taste | | | | Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) - MSG is commonly |
| of the foods and to prolong their shelf-life. | | | | used as a flavor enhancer in soups, salad dressings, |
| How Bad Are Processed Foods? | | | | chips, frozen entrees, and restaurant food. It can cause |
| Fresh foods contain many nutrients, such as soluble | | | | headaches, nausea, and allergic reactions in some |
| fiber, antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and | | | | people. |
| natural fats, designed by nature to protect your body. | | | | Aspartame - A sweetener known by the brand |
| Not only do processed foods lack these important | | | | names NutraSweet and Equal is found in diet foods |
| nutrients, they also contain many unsavory ingredients | | | | such as low-calorie desserts, gelatins, drink mixes, and |
| that have been proven to harm your health. Studies | | | | soft drinks. Research shows that regular consumption |
| have concluded that regular consumption of | | | | may cause endocrine (hormone) and neurological |
| processed foods can lead to a myriad of health | | | | problems. Some adverse reactions include headaches |
| problems, such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and | | | | migraines, abdominal pain, fatigue, dizziness, vision |
| cancer. | | | | hallucinations and anxiety attacks. |
| Therefore, if you don't cook or are crunched for time | | | | Acesulfame-K - An artificial sweetener found in baked |
| and have to rely on processed foods for your | | | | goods, chewing gum, gelatins, and some low-calorie |
| sustenance, the least you can do is to choose | | | | desserts has shown to cause tumors in animal studies. |
| processed foods that don't contain the following | | | | It is also found to stimulate insulin production and can |
| harmful ingredients: | | | | potentially aggravate hypoglycemia (low blood sugar |
| Trans Fats | | | | attacks). |
| - Trans fats are the worst of all fats because they | | | | Food Colorings (Blue 1, 2; Red 3; Green 3; Yellow 6) - |
| boost your levels of "bad" LDL cholesterol and | | | | These five food colorings have been linked to various |
| decrease your "good" HDL cholesterol. That's double | | | | forms of cancer in animal testing. |
| trouble for your heart and arteries. | | | | BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole), BHT (butylated |
| - Trans fats are factory-created fats. The process of | | | | hydrozyttoluene), Propyl Gallate, and Potassium |
| hydrogenation alters the chemical structure of liquid | | | | Bromate - These are all preservatives added to |
| vegetable oils, such as those made from corn, | | | | processed foods and are potentially cancer-causing |
| soybean, safflower, or sunflower. Manufacturers | | | | reactive compounds. |
| prefer to use trans fats because they have a higher | | | | White sugar - Last but not least, watch out for |
| melting point (which makes them attractive for baking) | | | | sugar-loaded foods, such as baked goods, cereals, |
| and a longer shelf-life. Trans fats can be found in | | | | sauces, and many other processed foods. If the label |
| baked goods, crackers, snack foods, microwave | | | | says "evaporated cane juice", "cane sugar", "beet |
| popcorn, stick margarine, French fries and many other | | | | sugar", "sucrose", "dextrose", or "maltodextrin", it is still |
| processed foods. Restaurant food, especially fast | | | | sugar. Try to choose foods with less than 5 grams of |
| food, is often laden with trans fats. | | | | sugar per serving. |
| - Check the ingredient list for words like "partially | | | | Tips To Preparing Home-Cooked Meals |
| hydrogenated oil" or "hydrogenated oil". Even if the | | | | - Preparing your own food not only saves money, you |
| packaging says "0 gram trans fat", it might still contain | | | | also control the ingredients that go into it. It is |
| less than 0.5 gram of trans fat. When you are eating | | | | significantly more economical and nutritionally far |
| several servings a day, it can add up. | | | | superior to prepare your own meals. You just need |
| High Fructose Corn Syrup | | | | some organization and planning ahead. |
| - Research has proven that high fructose corn syrup | | | | - For most people, there is usually at least one day out |
| upsets the human metabolism, raising the risk for | | | | of the week that isn't as chaotic. Use that day for |
| diabetes and heart disease. Due to its chemical | | | | planning, shopping, preparing, and even cooking. Go |
| structure, it encourages overeating and leads to | | | | online (such as ) to look for recipes or dust off your |
| obesity. In addition, high consumption of fructose zaps | | | | old cookbooks. Think about the coming work week |
| the body's reserves of chromium, a mineral important | | | | and how much time you have every day to make a |
| for maintaining healthy levels of cholesterol, insulin, and | | | | meal, for example, an hour on Monday, 15 minutes on |
| blood sugar. | | | | Tuesday, etc. |
| - Manufactures opt to use high fructose corn syrup | | | | - Plan your meals ahead of time and make a shopping |
| because it is cheaper, sweeter, mixes more easily with | | | | list. It is much more time efficient if you go grocery |
| other ingredients, and has a longer shelf-life. It gives | | | | shopping once a week. >li>Don't hesitate to begin |
| baked goods an inviting brown color and soft texture. | | | | preparing your meals ahead of time. Cook in batches, |
| Today, Americans consume nearly 63 pounds of it per | | | | enough for two or more meals. You can always |
| person per year in drinks and sweets, as well as in | | | | freeze them for use on days when you are in a rush. |
| many other processed foods. | | | | Better still, defrost them in the fridge the night before. |
| - Check the ingredient list for "high fructose corn | | | | This will cut down heating time. |
| syrup", "corn syrup", "corn syrup solids", or "corn | | | | - Chop up vegetables and store them in a zip-log bag. |
| sweetener". | | | | They only require a few minutes to cook. This way |
| Sodium Nitrate (Sodium Nitrite) | | | | you can ensure that you have some fresh vegetables |
| - Sodium nitrate (sodium nitrite) is used as a | | | | at every meal. Frozen vegetables, which are usually |
| preservative and a coloring and flavoring agent in | | | | frozen at the peak of ripeness, retain most nutrients |
| bacon, ham, hot dogs, luncheon meats, sausages, | | | | and are great substitues for the fresh ones. Stock up |
| corned beef, smoked fish, and other processed meats. | | | | a variety of frozen vegetables in your freezer. |
| These additives can lead to the formation of | | | | - Another good option is to invest in a crock pot or |
| cancer-causing chemicals called nitrosamines. Studies | | | | slow cooker. You can quickly throw together a meal in |
| have found a link between consuming nitrates and | | | | the morning (or the night before) and dinner will be |
| cancer in humans. | | | | ready when you get home in the evening. |