Although most of us know the basic do’s and don’ts of healthy eating, it can be difficult to follow a healthy diet when we are busy, stressed or just have salad and lean chicken. But what can shock you again to worry about what you eat is the fact that there are certain foods that are definitely linked to a myriad of devastating consequences for your health. And you probably enjoy the food daily.
Some of them may be convenient, others are fun, but learning the science behind their bad reputation will help you realize how much you can do for your body by reducing its intake.
The following are foods that have been scientifically proven to seriously harm your health. And do not miss The 7 healthiest foods you can eat now to start on a better feeding path today.
It is undeniable that canned food is convenient. They brought many of us through the pandemic – an increase in the demand for canned soup and canned vegetables caused shortages in grocery store shelves last year. But canned food usually has a bad rap because it is unhealthy, and there is definitely something to the claim.
Canned foods can often be harmful because they are processed a lot. Although many canned vegetables are minimally processed and therefore can be part of a healthy diet, it is the meals-in-a-can-type products that really get you in trouble. (Think: canned soups, pastas, sauces, fruits compete …) It usually contains a lot of sodium and sugar to retain their flavors.
“When commercial [canned] soup is cooked at high temperature long enough to kill potentially harmful bacteria. Some of the natural fragrances evaporate. Salt is a cheap, easy way to compensate for the loss, “say experts from the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).
A high sodium intake over time can increase your blood pressure and increase your risk of heart attacks or strokes, according to a review published in the journal. Nutrients. So if you regularly enjoy canned food, try to make sure you stay within the recommended daily sodium intake, as set out by the CDC. To learn more about the risks associated with canned food, see what happens to your body when you eat canned food.
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Another very handy way to avoid cooking comes in the form of frozen, microwave meals. Unfortunately, experts say that while they can be deliciously and quickly prepared, they often do more harm to your body than good.
A 2015 study of The British Journal of Nutrition showed that consuming prepared foods, including meals in the microwave, can cause a poor diet daily. Daily consumption of “hot-and-eat” meals was accompanied by increased consumption of fat, lower consumption of fiber and a higher incidence of abdominal obesity.
Abdominal obesity, or the accumulation of abdominal fat, is strongly correlated with premature mortality. In fact, a recent study showed that every 10 centimeter increase in belly fat increased the risk of death from any cause by 8% for women and by 12% for men. To learn more about how microwave meals can affect your health, go to the dangerous side effects of eating microwave meals, according to Science.
One inevitable fact of fast food is that it is produced in mass production and that it is usually very processed. Processed food is any food that has been chemically altered and made only from refined ingredients and artificial substances (as opposed to whole foods). And one of the major negative side effects of regularly eating highly processed foods is inflammation.
According to the WebMD Medical Reference, inflammation can be caused by refined carbohydrates (such as white bread), sugary drinks, processed meats, margarine / shortening, and of course fried foods – or anything that consists of fast food. In fact, fast food can cause a kind of inflammatory reaction in your body as one that occurs when your body fights diseases, according to a study published by the journal. Cell by the University of Bonn.
According to Hope Ricciotti, managing director, and Toni Golen, according to Hope Ricciotti, MD, this body can be endured by the body for a long period of time. MD, Editors-in-Chief of Harvard Women’s Health Watch.
Sugar is found in everything these days, not just in the obvious places like desserts. Drinks, sauces, spices and even bread and pastries are usually loaded with added sugar, which contributes to Americans’ overconsumption of this dangerous nutrient.
One in four Americans consumes far more than the USDA’s recommended daily added 50-gram sugar shell, and consumes 105 grams of sugar daily. (American Heart Association guidelines indicate no more than 24 grams of added sugar for women and no more than 35 grams for men.)
The tricky thing about sugar consumption is that its effects on your health can only be noticed years later, says Elizabeth Spencer, MS, RDN, LDN, a registered dietitian at Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital. “This includes the risk of type 2 diabetes, fatty liver, heart disease and arthritis,” she adds. Not to mention the more immediate weight gain.
To better keep track of whether you are ingesting too much of the sweet stuff, you need to learn to decode the messages your body is sending you. To find out more, look at The biggest danger sign that you are eating too much sugar, say dietitians.
High daily consumption of red meat, including beef, pork and lamb, has been linked to higher cases of colon cancer, according to the Harvard Medical School website.
A major 2005 study from Europe found 478,000 healthy men and women for a period of five years, during which 1,329 colon cancers were diagnosed. Those who ate the most red meat (5 grams per day or more) had about a third chance of being diagnosed with colon cancer than those who ate the least red meat (less than 1 gram per day). Consumption of other types of meat, such as chicken or fish, did not affect the risk.
The scary thing? The average American consumed 222.4 pounds of red meat in 2018 – the equivalent of nearly 10 meatballs a day (or about 10 grams per day), according to the USDA. A quarter of the adults in this country still eat more unprocessed red meat than the recommended level according to the data published in the country Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics in 2019.
To find out if you are one of them, go look at 6 subtle signs that you are eating too much red meat.
Read more about the 108 most popular sodas ranked by how toxic they are, for more tips for healthy eating.