Canned food can make cooking fast, convenient and tasty. But you should avoid these 7 unhealthy options — they’re the worst you can buy
Canned food can make cooking fast, convenient and tasty. But you should avoid these 7 unhealthy options — they’re the worst you can buy
Convenience and speed the some perks that come with canned food, but be wary of things like high sodium and sugar that you should avoid.
Quality, taste and nutrients are, of course, all important factors when it comes to picking which food you might eat. But for many people, convenience and speed — or even just less time spent in the kitchen — are important when it comes to cooking.
When it comes to making sure you’re not slaving away over a stove for hours on end for each meal, canned foods are great pantry staples that can help you manage your time effectively. Moreover, they can often help you avoid breaking the bank — or severing your tastebuds.
This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Contact a qualified medical professional before engaging in any physical activity, or making any changes to your diet, medication or lifestyle.
Still, canned food often gets a bad rep. Sometimes, they can be seen as over-processed. At other times, they may be considered less flavourful than their fresh counterparts.
That’s not always the case, however. Some canned foods even have more nutrients thanks to heat-activated preservation techniques. According to Unlock Food Canada, for example, canned tomatoes have more lycopene, an antioxidant that can help protect against serious health risks such as heart disease and cancer.
But not all canned foods are as healthy as you might think. Below, read more about seven types of canned foods you should avoid picking up during your next grocery store trip.
1. Canned fruit in syrup
Calling fruit unhealthy might sound like an oxymoron, but the canned versions of sweet peaches, pineapples, tangerines and fruit medleys are something you should skip eating. The Food Bank of Waterloo has recommended that people avoid canned fruit packaged in syrup due to its high sugar content.
According to Health Canada, canned fruit in light syrup has around 21 per cent of your daily recommended sugar intake. When looking at nutritional labels, anything higher than 15 per cent is a lot when it comes to sugar.
Moreover, the canning process can impact nutrients that are otherwise present in fresh fruit. According to Livestrong, the amount of water-soluble vitamin C and most vitamin B in fruits is reduced when canned.
2. Canned soup
Soup is healthy, right? It has meat or beans, vegetables and broth — all what you’d consider healthy foods. However, many canned soups contain way too much salt. A study by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) found that condensed and ready-to-serve soups have some of the highest sodium levels in the Canadian packaged food industry.
That study also found soup is one of the biggest contributors of sodium to Canadian diets, along with canned and pickled vegetables. That said, canned soups can be a convenient and accessible way to eat nutritionally balanced meals. Fortunately, most soup companies make lower-sodium options.
3. Canned vegetables
When CIHR researchers tested the sodium content in various packaged foods, they found almost 30 per cent of canned vegetables exceeded maximum sodium levels. That said, the sodium content in canned vegetables varies widely, often between zero and 2,800 mg per 100 g of food. If eating canned vegetables helps you get more produce in your diet, look for labels indicating they have lower sodium content.
According to Unlock Food, the following labels indicate less than five mg of sodium per serving:
-
Free of sodium/salt
-
Salt-free
-
Without salt
-
Contains no sodium
The second-best labels are those indicating less than 140 mg of salt per serving:
-
Low sodium
-
Low in sodium/salt
-
Low source of sodium/salt
Double-check the salt content of any packages marked with “reduced” or “lower” salt or sodium. These labels only mean the product contains less sodium than the original version. Similarly, “no added” sodium or salt means the manufacturers didn’t add salt. The original product might still be high in sodium.
4. Canned pre-cooked pasta
Pre-cooked pasta in sauce is one of the unhealthiest canned foods. While they might be tasty meals, the reason they have that addictive flavour is due to high levels of sugar and salt. For example, a can of Heinz Alphaghetti contains 1,490 mg of sodium and 18 g of sugar. That’s 65 per cent and 18 per cent of your recommended daily intake, respectively.
Considering the amount of poor nutrients in these canned foods, it’s probably a good idea to stick to making your own pasta and sauce.
5. Canned chili
When you’re tired or too busy to cook, it’s tempting to grab a can of chili and heat it up for dinner as an easy fix for a meal. Unfortunately, canned chili performs the same as canned pasta nutritionally. In the CIHR study, more than 43 per cent of canned and other shelf-stable meals exceeded the recommended sodium maximum.
Chili is a significant culprit. The nutritional label for the Stagg Chili shows 1,430 mg of sodium per 425 g can. That’s 62 per cent of your recommended daily value; the same serving also contains 14 per cent of your recommended daily sugar intake.
6. Canned baked beans
Canned beans are a toss-up when it comes to nutrition. If you choose well, they’re a quick and easy way to make high-protein dishes with or without meat. Dry beans require soaking and pre-cooking, but canned beans come ready to eat.
Some canned beans have high sodium content, mainly from the liquid in the can. Unlock Food has recommended it’s a good idea to choose no-sodium-added versions, or drain the liquid before cooking. If you’re careful about your choice of beans, they’re not so bad.
Canned baked beans are harder to justify. The manufacturing process involves cooking them in a sweet syrup that you don’t drain away. According to FatSecret Canada, Heinz Baked Beans has 520 mg of sodium per serving, 23 per cent of your daily value. It also has nearly nine grams of sugar.
7. Canned meat
Between sausages and corned beef, to Spam and other hams, canned meats are one kind of food that aren’t great. While they’re not the worst of the worst, with many containing low to no grams of sugar, there are other aspects of the nutrition label you should be analyzing when picking up these foods.
Within most canned meats, the sodium content brings these options to the dark side. Vienna sausage has roughly 1,095 mg of sodium per serving, which is almost half your recommended intake. Spam does better at 560 mg, which is 24 per cent of your recommended daily value. Still, these aren’t things that should always be entering your grocery cart when you’re out shopping.
Choosing the right canned food
Did you notice a pattern? All of the “bad” canned foods on this list have high levels of sugar or sodium. It’s not the food itself, but how it’s prepared.
The canning process isn’t the problem. There’s a widespread myth that preservation strips foods of their nutrients. But according to Canadian Food Focus, most canned foods are nutritionally intact.
More in Health
EXCLUSIVE: Mom, 35, Details 1st Signs of Pancreatic Cancer That Doctors Dismissed for Months
TODAY
Emotionally Immature Women Usually Display These 13 Behaviors Without Realizing It, According to Psychologists
Parade
Doctors Are Revealing 1 Of The Most Commonly Missed Warning Signs Of Dementia, And It Can Happen Early
BuzzFeed
Too much salt and sugar make canned foods problematic. Fortunately for consumers, you can filter out the worst options and choose lower-salt and lower-sugar options to get the best health benefits from the food you eat.
Let us know what you think by commenting below and tweeting @YahooStyleCA! Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.
Powered by WPeMatico