One doctor spoke recently about rumors concerning food additives, addressing concerns that even occasional consumption of instant noodles is harmful to the body.
“Long ago that might have been the case, but food additives have come a long way,” Taipei Medical University Hospital nutritionist Lin Yu-ju (林郁茹) said.
The Food and Drug Administration does not permit the use of preservatives in the noodles themselves, Lin said, adding that if seasonings contain preservatives, this must be clearly indicated on the packaging.
Most instant noodles are preserved through dehydration, using a high-temperature deep-fry process, boiling or steaming to kill bacteria, she said.
“However, while you are not going to turn into a mummy from eating instant noodles [as some online rumors have suggested], the noodles are high in oil content and will make you fat if you eat too much,” she said.
Rumors that instant noodles take up to 32 days to leave the body are not based on any scientific research, she said.
Taipei Medical University Hospital resident gastroenterologist Fan Chun-wei (范峻維) said that a healthy person will generally digest food within one day.
“What is absorbed by the liver is processed by the body right away. It is not very likely that something would stay in the body for 32 days,” Fan said. “Only if there is something that the liver really cannot process would it build up in the body.”
However, Lin said that even if the rumors are false, she would not recommend that people eat them often.
“There is just not enough nutrition in instant noodles, and the seasonings are very high in sodium, oil and calories,” she said. “People who occasionally eat instant noodles should use less of the included seasonings and add their own vegetables, eggs or meat to enhance their nutritional value.”
Fan tried to dispel the rumor that food additives can lead to hair loss, saying that hair loss is more often connected with hormone and stress levels, as well as environmental pollutants, such as mercury.
However, Lin said that eating an excessive amount of instant noodles could contribute to hair loss, as they are nutritionally unbalanced and low in protein.
Protein deficiency could affect hair and nail health, she said.
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