I hope you have read the other 2 interesting posts – Coke is not bad for the health and Pizza is healthy, my mom told me, in these I shared some interesting facts and study. To continue with this series, i come to other favorite outdoor eat, burger.
Who doesn’t like this round bread delight called burger? But just like human behavior every burger is not same, some will not behave well and load you with calories but some will fill your belly with fewer calories and more nutrients.
And this burgery behavior depends on different factors like cooking method, bread of choice, portion size and especially toppings (now that’s mouth watering). Let’s see how and how much this fast food can make you a fast gainer and how can you avoid such condition without compromising your love for burger.
How burger performs in your stomach?
The love for food starts with mouth and grows in stomach means if your burger love doesn’t show compatibility with your innocent stomach then you have to eventually break up with it. Watch this video to see what happens to a cheese burger when it is dipped into concentrated hydrochloric acid.
Hydrochloric acid is found in stomach and break down the food so that the digestive enzymes can easily act upon it so that you can get energy or make you fat by send it for storage in the body.
This acid is very strong mineral acid and used for various industrial purposes such as removing steel, neutralizing water, processing leather, purifying salt and balancing pH levels. Therefore, it was a surprise that the burger has not break down instantly when it was dipped in the acid. It has taken three and half hours to melt into a black liquid and that was only half of the burger we are talking about.
The matter of concern is when half of burger is taking more than three hours to MELT into purest form of a corrosive acid then how much time it will take inside the body where bile salts and other minerals are also present. The another point is that digestion process takes lots of time and it is more energy and time consuming in case of fats. On the other hand, a fruit salad is digested in just 30minutes since it is packed with fruits and veggies with high water content.
Burger, if you eat in McDonalds or KFC
You must have enjoyed burger from McDonalds or KFC but do you know that an experiment known as “happy meal project” has been performed on McDonald burger to check its digestibility and it was found that it has maintained its original condition EVEN AFTER SIX MONTHS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You don’t believe me then watch this:
Burger, if you eat in Subway
Subway food chain has been known to offer fresh, delicious and made to order sandwiches. Subway used to have azodicarbonamide, a chemical used for dough conditioning which makes the bread softer for long period and prevent it from molding. But after the campaign of blogger and activist Vani Hari, Subway has stopped using this ingredient in its bread.
What burger does in your stomach?
As we have mentioned above that burger has been difficult to break down even in presence of concentrated acid i.e. hydrochloric acid (refer above Para how burger performs in your stomach), it means it will slow down your body after eating as your body will spend most of the available energy in digesting it. Just have a look at what actually happens when burger enter into your stomach in this video.
The chemical ingredients found in this fast food can cause indigestion, osteoporosis and even bowel cancer. Here is a list of chemicals found in McDonald burger which are harmful for the body
Acrylamide
This is possessed by the famous fries which you can find all over the world in McDonald menu. This chemical is present in high amount in fried potatoes and it is linked to cancer and reproductive toxicity. This is not an added ingredient but it is a result of frying which is a common practice in fast food chains. Its level is affected by the cooking period of the food means if the fries are over fried then it will contain high level of Acrylamide than the fries which are cooked for less period.
Azodicarbonamide
This chemical ingredient has been used from many years as dough conditioner. It is mainly used for two purposes which are to whiten the bread and allow the bread to bake quickly. It also prevents the bun from molding means the bread will look like fresh bread even after days or weeks. This chemical is used in industries as foaming agent, blowing agent for plastic and rubbers besides acting as a food additive. It is banned in European countries and Australia.
Sodium acid pyrophosphate
This chemical ingredient is used as leavening agent and it is generally found in hash browns, eggs and tortillas etc. it may cause severe inflammation if it is inhaled or ingested in bulk form or it comes in contact with eyes or skin. Its excessive consumption can even cause osteoporosis.
Dimethylpolysiloxane
This ingredient is added to cooking oils as an anti foaming agent in many food items such as Filet-o-Fish, Chicken McNuggets and French fries. This chemical can also be found in cosmetics, hair conditioners, silly putty and even in breast implants.
THBQ (tertiary butyl hydroquinone)
This chemical preservative is used along with the vegetable oil to prepare chicken McNuggets. It is petroleum based and generally found in cosmetics like eye shadows.
Sodium aluminum phosphate
It is used as an additive to prepare the batter of chicken McNuggets and it is found to be linked with the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.
Sodium benzoate
This is found in most of the sauces and soft drinks offered by McDonalds. According to a UK based study if this chemical is consumed along with artificial food color then it can cause hyperactivity in children.
Disodium 5′-ribonucleotides
It is found in the McDonalds chicken product and some of the sauces and it should totally avoid by the asthmatics and gout patients.
Sodium metabisulfite
This is another dough conditioner used in tortillas and can cause allergic reaction in sulfite sensitive people. Sulfite is linked to many health problems such as skin conditions, lethargy, diabetes, bloating, joint pain and even brain fog. It is used as bleaching agent in coconut cream and waste treatment.
These are some chemicals which are generally found in the burger, fries, sauces and chicken nuggets. These chemicals can keep the texture of food intact for long time. For example let’s take a case study
What happens to a burger after 8 Weeks?
Watch this video to see by yourself that what actually happens to your favorite burger after 8 weeks of time and you will find that some of them never age with time. If it is the case outside your body then what will happen when it will go inside you. Just think!!!!
Healthy burger, if you want to eat it
You can’t live without it then you have to do some effort. Either do it yourself and make a burger with your own hands at the comfort of your house or look for burger whose components are prepared with 100 percent natural ingredients. Here are some simple tips for you if you are making it at home
- Use Greek yogurt or smashed avocado instead of mayonnaise
- Use whole wheat bread crumbs as filler
- Use fresh herbs as calorie booster
- Use green leafy veggies into the burger mixture or add them as toppings
- Use healthy homemade spreads such as mustard, homemade ranch or ketchup
- Don’t load your burger with cheese, try to grate it for an even spread
- Make the bun at home with whole wheat flour or go bun less and serve the burger between two slices of zucchini or lettuce wrap or on top of salad.