What’s in your Ramen?

You’ve always been told to not eat foods that are processed and contain preservatives, but have you ever wondered why?  Nearly all processed foods contain preservatives (amongst other horrible ingredients for you), which are put in the food to obtain a longer shelf life.  Why is this bad, you ask?  Food is not meant to last forever.  If you compare organic or nonGMO (genetically modified organisms) foods to processed foods, or even fruits and veggies sprayed with chemicals, they last half as long; which is a good thing!  Our bodies don’t properly digest processed foods like they would with natural foods, because of all the chemicals and preservatives that are added to them.

The average amount of time our bodies take to breakdown and digest certain foods is around 30 minutes to an hour.  That’s why we are told not to go swimming or workout for at least an hour after eating, otherwise we would get stomach cramps.  It’s because your body is in the middle of digestion.

Dr. Kuo recently performed a study on the effects of instant ramen noodles in the body and how they are “digested.”  The experiment tested instant ramen noodles vs. homemade ramen, and what he found was shocking.  When comparing the two side by side, at the 2 hour mark, you could see that the homemade ramen was almost all completely digested while the instant ramen still looked like it did in the beginning of it entering the stomach.  That is completely repulsive to me and it’s sad that foods like this are still being sold in America.

The preservative particularly found in Instant Ramen (amongst other fast food chain food items), is called Tertiary-Butyl hydroquinone or TBHQ.  TBHQ is found in processed foods, and is sprayed on the food and packaging to preserve shelf life and color.  The scary thing is that the FDA has APPROVED this harsh chemical up to 0.02%, which isn’t toxic when consumed once, but studies have shown that there are longterm effects on your health including the weakening of organs which contributes to onset tumors and cancer.

Along with Ramen, there are a multitude of other foods that contain this preservative, as Author Natasha Longo for Wake Up World mentions:

Mcdonalds chicken nuggets and french fries
CHEEZ-IT Crackers made by Kelloggs
Butterfinger’s, Reese’s Peanut butter cups, Nestle Crunch
Wheat Thins
Microwave popcorn
Pam cooking spray
Keebler Club crackers
Kelloggs Eggo frozen waffles and many other Kelloggs products
Taco Bell beans and some taco shells
Teddy Grahams
Red Barron frozen pizza
Keebler Cookies
Little Debbie snacks
Kelloggs Pop-Tarts
Homestyle Peanut butter cookies
Some forms of soymilk
Different breads cereals and crackers could contain TBHQ
Crisco oil
Pet foods
Many cosmetic products and baby products
Some hair dyes, lipsticks, and eyeshadows
Wrigley’s gum
some M&M products
KFC beans and fried chicken

So, my recommendation to you is that if you are taking care of your body on the outside, you should be taking care of your body on the inside as well.