Health threat! Is packaged food really healthy?
Indians' likes and dislikes are changing, especially when it comes to food. Earlier, people used to eat mostly raw vegetables, fruits and whole grains, but nowadays the trend of packaged and processed food has increased.
Some doctors and experts have together examined the packaged food sold in India. To know how good or bad these foods are for health. They also saw whether whatever is written on the packet is correct or not. This research has been published in a famous magazine named Plos One.
The people who did this research included: Doctors from Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, chennai, experts from Medical Research Council of india and Professor from University of Reading, England.
Packaged food: Correct information on the label, still a danger to health!
The nutritional information written on the label of packaged food tells us about the nutrients present in that food. This information is very important for customers because with this they can decide how good or bad that food is for their health.
In this study, researchers examined the labels of 432 packaged foods available in the indian market. These included packaged foods like idli mix, breakfast cereals, porridge mix, beverage mix and puffed snacks.
The research found that the information written on the label was correct in 80% of the packaged foods. That is, the nutrients written on the label were present in the product. Most packaged foods contain very high amounts of carbohydrates. Actually, our body needs carbohydrates for energy, but if we eat more carbohydrates than required, then it is not good for our health. Excess carbohydrates can cause obesity, diabetes and heart disease. Puffed snacks were found to have high fat content. Fat also provides energy, but excess fat can increase cholesterol and increase the risk of heart disease.
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