Even though picking up a can of soup might save time and efforts, it is not the healthiest choice that one can make. It could lead to several health risks in the long run. Continue reading to understand how and why this happens.
Canned soup, or any other canned product for that matter, might seem like the most tempting deal because it saves on the time and efforts that are spent in preparing the soup from scratch. In today’s busy lifestyles, the dependency on canned products has increased, but is that the most healthy choice to make? Is canned soup good for you? No, it is not. Let us review the reasons of the same in the following sections.
Excess Salt
Ever felt a salty residue in your mouth after you’re done with your bowl of canned soup? That happens because canned products have an overload of salt and sodium in them. This is done in order to preserve them for long. A profusion of salt levels can create havoc in your body. Excess salt leads to water retention (edema) which makes you end up feeling bloated and heavy. It also leads to other health complications like high blood pressure, risks of heart arrests, stomach cancer, kidney malfunction, asthma, osteoporosis, and others.
We need salt in very less amounts (2,300 mg), but canned soup usually contains a lot more than that. Over time, the salt and sodium levels in our bodies will rise and invariably lead to health problems.
Preservatives
Just as canned goods require salt and sodium for preservation, they also need other preservatives for the same. These usually include preservatives like Monosodium Glutamate (MSG), Potassium benzoate, Benzoic acid, Tartrazine, Potassium nitrate, Sodium sulphite, and Sulfur dioxide among others. All these not only take away from the natural textures and tastes of the food, but leave in their wake a number of other health issues. So even if it is a low carb canned soup, and let’s assume that this is healthy, the inclusion of all these other preservatives works to negate its effect any which way.
Preservation Methods
For canned goods to last, not only are preservatives added, but the way in which the goods are prepared is also completely different and need not always follow a very healthy route. Normal vegetables and meats won’t last in canned products. For them to last, they are either grown in a hybrid manner and then added to the can or artificial means of storing them are used. These include taking out all their water content so that they shrivel up and thus, last in the product, in this instance – the soup. To state an example, a normal piece of carrot and one that is found in a can of soup, does not taste the same and neither does it look the same. It does not provide the same health benefits either.
Weight Gain
The excess of all these preservatives and salts is not only going to lead to other health issues but also lead to tremendous weight gain and obesity. The entry of foreign substances puts a lot of pressure on the digestive system such that proper digestion does not happen (that by itself gives rise to several problems) but it also works by storing the excess fat and preservative in our body. This in turn increases the toxic levels of the body and leads to a lowered metabolism and thus, weight gain.
Over-consumption
The servings for canned soup are usually meant for two or more people. But the amount is less, so that one ends up consuming the entire can by themselves. Which means that you are eating the sodium/fats/preservatives that were supposed to be distributed among two people all by yourself. Thus it will harm you more because it’s a direct overload on your system.
The next time you reach for that canned soup, check the ingredients list carefully and see for yourself what you’re trying to get into your stomach. Instead of nourishing you, many of these items which undergo canning are simply attacking you.