Who didn't eat ramen noodles multiple times a week during
college? Unfortuantely, the habit could come with some serious health
consequences: A new study from The Journal of Nutrition shows
that consumption of instant noodles—precooked noodle-based meals you
make by adding boiling water or heating in the microwave before
eating—may increase the risk of a scary condition called cardiometabolic
syndrome, which in turn can lead to heart disease, diabetes, or stroke.
Since Asian populations eat high quantities of instant
noodles, Baylor University researchers looked at dietary information
from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey IV from
2007 to 2009. They identified two major eating patterns: the
"traditional dietary pattern" (TP), high in rice, fish, veggies, fruit,
and potatoes; and the "meat and fast-food pattern" (MP), high in meat,
soda, fried food, and convenience foods like instant noodles and ramen.
Not surprisingly, the MP was associated with higher obesity rates and
bad cholesterol levels, while the TP was associated with better
blood-pressure readings and a lower risk of obesity—but neither showed a
clear link to the risk of developing cardiometabolic syndrome.
However, when researchers examined the numbers for instant
noodle consumption in particular, they found that consuming the noodles
at least twice per week was associated with a 68 percent higher
incidence of metabolic syndrome among women, even after adjusting for
other factors like sodium intake, estrogen use, and waist circumference.
Consuming noodles once a week was associated with a 26 percent higher
prevalence of the condition. This relationship didn't exist men.
Researchers think the increased risk is likely the result of
the high calories, refined carbs, saturated fat, and sodium content
typically found in instant noodles. Women in particular might be
susceptible to these negative health effects because of hormones that
affect women disproportionately and metabolic differences. For instance,
the chemical Bisphenol A (BPA), found in the styrofoam containers
frequently used to package instant noodles, messes with the way hormones
signal messages within the body, particularly estrogen.
The study does have limitations, though. For instance, the
numbers from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
didn't take serving size into account, only the number of times a
person consumed a given food. That said, researchers hope the study will
remind people to be more mindful of their food choices. It’s important
to remember many packaged foods, like instant noodles, are more like
fast food—nutritionally speaking—than a home-cooked meal.
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