Health Tips: In today’s busy lifestyle, preparing a fresh and balanced diet has become a challenge. Due to lack of time, people are becoming dependent on ready-to-eat and packed food available in the market instead of home-cooked food. To capitalize on these needs, the market resorts to attractive labels like healthy, natural and sugar-free.
But do you know that the things you are eating to improve your health are actually making you hollow from inside? Experts believe that prolonged consumption of processed health food can spoil the body’s metabolism and invite serious diseases.
Juice is considered to be the best alternative to fruits but this is a big misconception. Artificial colors and large amounts of preservatives are added to canned juices to preserve their taste. Whereas in the fresh juice available at the shop, the most important part of the fruit i.e. fiber is removed. Drinking juice without fiber suddenly increases the blood sugar level in the body which puts pressure on the liver.
Oats are the first choice for those looking to lose weight, but the 2-minute instant oats available in the market are the enemies of health. They are highly processed and contain high amounts of sodium, artificial flavors and sugar. If you want the real benefits of oats, then choose steel-cut oats or rolled oats.
Symbolic photo (Ms. AI)
Brown bread is sold in the market under the name of flour or multigrain. The reality is that most brown breads contain only 10-20% flour and the rest is just plain flour. To make it brown, caramel color is added to it. It spoils the digestive system as well as increases weight.
Curd and lassi are good sources of probiotics but when flavors like mango or strawberry are added to it, it becomes like a sweet cold drink. The amount of sugar in these packed dairy products can be more than that of a normal sweet. Apart from this, the chemicals used to make them last longer harm the good bacteria of the intestines.
Diabetic patients or fitness conscious people tend to turn to sugar-free biscuits or sweets. According to medical science, there is no such thing as sugar-free. Artificial sweeteners are used in these which can be more dangerous than refined sugar. Our body processes natural sweeteners (like jaggery or honey) in the same way as sugar, so consuming too many calories in the name of sugar-free can make the body seriously ill.
Instead of falling prey to these products sold in the name of health, give priority to natural and minimally processed food. Before buying any packet, read the ingredients written on the back of it carefully. Remember that food that is packed in cans and has a shelf life of months may not be good for your longevity.
