Processed foods like junk foods are everywhere. Excessive and unhealthy amounts of fats, salt and sugar, might give your health devastating effects.
We’ve listed below the 10 most unhealthy foods. These should be taken in moderation to avoid undesirable effects to your health.
1. Fried Desserts
You should avoid those deep-fried desserts especially those coated in batter and high in sugar and fats. These can clog up your arteries, leading to strokes, diabetes, and heart attacks over time.
2. Cheesy Fries
Fries are high in calories, salt, and fat. The fries’ regular portion contains roughly 420 calories. If you add 100g of cheddar cheese on top of the fries, that’s 400 calories more plus 35g of fat.
3. Pork Scratchings (Pork Crackle or Rind)
Unsurprisingly, deeply fried pig skin is covered with salt, making it one of the most unhealthy foods. If you ever have a bag of these pork scratching, you might have the pleasure of seeing some piece with hairs on it. Usually, pig hair is removed by burning its skin quickly before it is cut up and cooked in hot fat; however, some hair still remains on its skin.
4. Canned Soups
Canned soups might be an innocent addition. They are not that bad for your health compared to other foods we feature in our top 10. However, they contain a lot of salt. A soup can provide a healthy, hearty meal full of vitamins and some other goodness. So if you want to eat soup, then cook your own healthy and nutritious soup at home.
5. Cereals
A lot of us usually start the day with a cereal bowl, however, this choice of breakfast, in some cases, might contain a lot of harmful ingredients.
Preservatives, flavoring, artificial dyes, and high amounts of sugar are usually added to cereals (especially for children) to make them last longer. As per the Journal of American Diabetic Association published article, it was found out that cereals marketed for children contain more sugar, calories per gram, carbohydrates, and sodium compared to other cereals that are not for children. Try to stick with low sugar and high fiber cereals if possible.
6. Fizzy Drinks
Fizzy drinks are not food, but they still deserve to be included on this list. Osteoporosis, tooth decay, and heart disease are some of the results on health when consumed regularly. These drinks contain hidden sugar in an enormous amount. An average coke contains 10 teaspoons of sugar. Diet drinks should also be avoided even it seems to be more healthy because it has lesser calories compared to full fat; however, it contains artificial sweeteners, which, over time, can rot tooth enamel.
7. Processed Meats
To enhance the processed meats’ color and make it last longer, they have been modified to contain some chemical additives and nitrates. Some meats that are processed like sausages are made up of unwanted animal parts, leftovers and a high amount of fats and salt. Consumption of processed meat is risky to our health and might cause cancer, heart disease, and increased blood pressure.
8. Frozen Meals
Even if frozen meals are convenient for you, they offer little nutritional value. To make these frozen products stay for months, high levels of sodium and preservatives have been added by manufacturers. Make homemade alternatives on your own and freeze them in individual portions rather than filling your own freezer with ready made meals from shops.
9. Doughnuts
You maybe love doughnuts, but in the long run, your heart won’t. If you eat these fried doughnuts, you will consume high amounts of trans and saturated fat. Doughnuts are empty calories (chocolate doughnuts have 350 calories) but low in nutritional value.
10. Chicken Nuggets
Do not be fooled by thinking chicken nuggets are healthy since they contain chicken. Truthfully, it’s rare that chicken nuggets contain chicken breast only. Manufacturers mix the meat with leftover carcass bits and bulking agents. The average nugget has 50% more carbs and fat than protein. Make your own healthy chicken nuggets by using lean chicken breast, cut it into pieces and coat it with breadcrumbs rather than eating deep-fried nuggets.
