Alert: If you eat french fries, you must read this new information
Alert: If you eat french fries, you must read this new information
Unless we prefer to eat raw foods, we have a wide range of cooking methods. To pan, jump, grill, fry ... it's up to us. However, frying remains the most discouraged or, at least, to use very rarely in cooking, especially when it comes to the potato. Discover the harmful effects of French fries on our health.
French fries are among the most popular foods around the world, and some countries, like Belgium, even make it a national symbol. The global consumption of this food is well over 11 billion kilos per year, or nearly 350 kilograms of fries per second, without taking into account home-made French fries.
The consumption of French fries
In France, 73% of French drink at least once a month, 60% eat homemade fries at least once a year.
Another survey carried out, still in France, revealed that the consumption of French fries increases when it is a group meal. With the family, the rate of consumption is perched at 90%, on vacation, it exceeds 85%, with friends, the rate is 81% while it reaches 58% in couple.
However, be aware that the high consumption of French fries is harmful to health. Here's why !
French fries increase the risk of death
A study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, observed potato consumption in a group of 4,400 people, aged between 45 and 79, for eight years. At the end of this study, 236 people lost their lives.
Potatoes in general do not increase the risk of death of a person. But when the researchers looked more closely at the different methods of cooking potatoes adopted by the candidates, they found that the consumption, at least twice a week, of meals including fries, or fried apples, doubled the risk of death.
The potato, to banish?
No ! According to the authors of this research, the white potato, when not fried, is a healthy food that contains a good amount of vitamins, micronutrients and fibers that promote satiety and facilitate intestinal transit. Cooked with water or steam, a ration of 250 grams of potatoes represents about 20% of daily contributions recommended fiber. Moreover, its nutritional value counterbalances the harmful effect on the health of its high glycemic index. However, when it goes through an oil bath, its fat and salt content increases considerably, and with it its health risks.
For now, the link between frequent French fries consumption and increased risk of death is only an association, and researchers say they need to deepen their research and include larger groups of people to actually establish this causal link and decide on the health risks of French fries.
Therefore, it is strongly recommended to eat potatoes salad, boiled, baked or mashed, to preserve its health and not reduce its life expectancy.
