Say “NO” to “Processed Foods”

We are living in the twenty-first century, the age of internet. Our living conditions and our life styles have undergone tremendous changes. We are competing against time. Both men and women are career oriented. There is a drastic deviation from traditional cooking styles in several homes. Many families are depending on “Processed Foods” that comes in attractive packages with neat labels stating the nutritive values of the food it contains.

These packaged, Processed Foods are ready to eat. It does not even require reheating or refrigeration.  People are comfortable eating packaged and processed foods because they save the time spent in preparation, cooking, and finally cleaning the utensils and the kitchen. Processed Foods are convenient to buy, store and use. Children are given these packed foods as tiffins for their lunch break in their schools. Office goers too enjoy eating them as a quick lunch in their office breaks.

Processed Foods are present in the diet plan of all the age groups of men, women, and kids. The manufacturers of these foods are so clever and skillful as they cater to the taste of old, young and children. Food processing industry is flourishing and increasing their varieties to cater to the taste of all sectors of people. We are also seeing new items of processed foods flooding the markets every day.

Processed foods are food substances altered from their natural state for convenience of use. The processing methods are canning, freezing, refrigeration, dehydration, salting, and sun drying, and heating. Nowadays, we also get ready to eat foods like Fried Rice, Palak Paneer etc coming in food grade packages and these foods have to simple heated before serving. These ready to eat food stuffs are packed in vacuum sealed packages and they are in frozen state.

Ready to eat food stuffs have all the necessary spices preservatives and additives added already in proper portion and hence does not require cooking. So they have to be just reheated before serving. In these food stuffs, preservatives are added to increase the shelf life of food to control the growth of bacteria, molds, yeast etc.   

All the food stuffs contain microbes which are harmless. They can multiply rapidly in favorable environmental conditions. They eat the food by breaking it down, which causes it to taste and smell bad. Therefore preserving and processing foods either slows the growth of microbes or destroy them.  The main preservative used by the food processing industry is salt, Sodium Chloride. Sodium of the salt is the deadliest ingredient.

Sodium is the main natural component of several foods. Of course, sodium is available in small percentage in many natural foods. But in processed foods it is present as sodium bicarbonate, monosodium glutamate, sodium benzoate, and sodium nitrate and nitrites in addition to sodium chloride, i.e., salt. Therefore when the food is processed sodium content of the food is increased.

There are many reasons for adding the compounds of sodium in processed foods. Sodium chloride or salt is present in almost all the foods. The chemical formula of sodium chloride is NaCl. It prevents the development of food borne pathogens hence, act as a preservative. It enhances flavor of the food and helps in developing color of the food.  It acts as a dehydrating agent too.

Sodium Benzoate is another sodium compound present in the processed foods. It is an organic chemical preservative and it is sodium salt of Benzoic acid. It reacts with water and forms benzoic acid. The chemical formula is NaC₆H₅CO_{2. .}  It is added in food items like jams, jellies, pickles, sauces, soups, fruit juices, soft drinks. It is added to prevent the growth and spread of fungi in these foods. It balances the pH level and increases the overall acidity of the foods.

Sodium bicarbonate is commonly called baking soda.  It is used in baked food products like bread, bun, cookies, and etc.The chemical formula is NaHCO_3.    It reacts with acid containing foods like butter milk, curd and vinegar to form carbon di oxide and water. The reason for adding this to wheat floor is to make them rise to prepare baked products. Wheat flour expands and develops a characteristic texture after cooking.

Sodium nitrite and nitrate are common additives used by the meat processing industries. Their chemical formula is: NaNO₂ and NaNO₃. They prevent the bacterial growth in meats and fishes. Clostridium botulinum is the bacteria that attack refrigerated meat and fishes. Sodium Nitrite and nitrates control the growth of these harmful microbes and prevent the foods from spoiling.

Monosodium glutamate is the sodium salt of glutamic acid. It is commonly called  Ajjinimoto.It is not regulated as a food additive but added in certain foods like meat, fish, poultry, sausages, vegetables, soups, salads, gravies etc. It gives a characteristic taste to the foods when added. It is a very harmful, dangerous food additive and known to cause several health disorders.

Several other sodium compounds are also used in processed foods. They are:

Disodium phosphate: Found in some quick-cooking cereals and processed cheeses.

Sodium alginate: Used in many chocolate milks and ice creams to make a smooth mixture.

Sodium hydroxide: Used in food processing to soften and loosen skins of certain fruits and vegetables.

Sodium propionate: Used in pasteurized cheese and in some breads and cakes to inhibit growth of molds.

Sodium sulfite: Used to bleach certain fruits that are to be artificially colored; also used as a preservative in some dried fruits such as prunes.

The processed foods are not healthy to include in our daily diet plan because they contain:

• Extra trans fats and saturated fats.
• Extra sodium and sugar.
• Often nutrients are removed to make the food last longer or look better.
• Higher ratio of calories to other essential nutrients.
• Empty calories.
• Ingredients in processed foods are often of low quality, but disguised by processing.
• Food additives have little or no nutritional value.
• Processed Foods ferment in the stomach because of several chemicals in them, digestion becomes sluggish, and stomach disorders are common. 
• Disposal of processed food waste, and empty packages causes environmental pollution.

Processed food stuffs are high in sodium content. Though they are tasty, come in attractive 

colors they are not at all good for health. The following are the effects on health due to high 

sodium in the processed foods:

• Water retention: Bloated feeling; causes increase in body weight.
• Hypertension: Makes the heart pump harder to deliver the blood causing heart disease.
• Malfunctioning of kidneys: High blood pressure damages heart, prevent kidneys from filtering impurities from the blood and damages other organs of the body.
• Multiple organ failure will be resulted.
• Causes Obesity and Malnutrition.

It is very essential to limit salt and foods containing sodium in our diet. The recommended amount of salt intake per day is only 1500mg for everyone and especially for those above 51. Following tips will help to reduce sodium from our diet:

• Eat more fresh foods, like fruits, vegetables, unprocessed whole grains, and lean meat.
• Prepare food at home in the kitchen instead of eating ready to eat frozen foods.
• Replace high sodium foods with low sodium foods.
• Use suitable herbs and spices to flavor the food to reduce salt.
• Include potassium rich foods in the daily diet plan.

“Cook Food at home and save your health and money”

“Prepare food at home be healthy and wealthy and wise”

(To be continued)