Lifestyle

According to a Study, Eating Fried Food, Especially French Fries, Will Shorten Your Lifespan

2018-06-28 , 3:22 pm

Last Updated on 2023-01-22 , 6:05 pm

I find this a personal attack on who I am as a person. Because I’m a person who loves fried food.

So you can imagine how #shook I was when my boss sent me this WebMD article that forced me to confront my love of everything fried.

Like excuse me, how dare you make me snap out of my delusions and face reality? The audacity.

Anyway, we all know that fried food is unhealthy. Linked to heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, etc, etc.

**But did you know that fried potatoes are especially unhealthy for you?**

Like…it could end your life sooner than normal kind of unhealthy?

According to a study done, people who eat fried potatoes (yes, includes french fries, hashbrowns, potato wedges and so on) more than twice a week are more likely to die earlier than someone who eats fried potatoes in moderation?

The study involved over 4000 people aged from 45 to 79 years old and it lasted for 8 years.

Basically, when potatoes are cooked to be yummy (aka, fried in unhealthy oils), they are high in trans-fat.

And the salt just makes everything worse. Those two things are like a noose around your neck growing tighter and tighter till it kills you.

Sigh.

Now, before you give up all fried potatoes forever, there is some good news.

The study didn’t tell you exactly how the participants died. Some of them could’ve been run over by a car, for all we know.

And they also conducted the study by asking the participants to tell them from memory what they ate and how often they ate it.

Okay not to be age-ist, but hello, all the participants so old already leh. They might’ve remembered their stuff wrongly.

So sorry lah, but this study for me is very unreliable already.

I mean my mom can’t even remember where she puts her handphone half the time leh…

And the icing on the cake? The researchers didn’t even prove that it was fried potatoes that killed them. Other things in their diet and lifestyle might have done them in, but it wasn’t controlled or mentioned.

This study can siam lah ah, scare me anyhow only. So unreliable. Never pay attention in sec school science class. Reliable experiments, people!

According to stats from 2014 taken by the National Potato Council (yep, this is a thing – I love being alive), Americans consumed about 35kg of processed potatoes per person annually.

I wonder how much Singaporeans consume.

Don’t think we’ll be any better, tbh.

In any case, just because this study seems to be quite unreliable, please don’t take it as an excuse to go anyhow eat a ton of fried food.

Fried food is still unhealthy

They are high in trans-fat, sodium and calories. Meaning they increase the risk of you getting heart disease, obesity and diabetes.

But we are talking about processed food (fast food) which are fried in hydrogenated oil. We are also talking about whatever you fry at home in unhealthy oils.

You can use healthy oils like Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, Ghee and so on. You can also turn to oven-baking and air-frying (you don’t need oil for this!).

The bottom line is, there are alternative ways to enjoy fried food that won’t put you at risk for scary diseases. Just switch up your cooking oil, invest in an air-fryer, and limit the intake of processed food in your diet.

It’s okay to indulge every once in a while. It’s okay to have a love affair with fried food. Just do it all in moderation.

Seriously. I swear by this principle. Eat everything you want. Just do it in moderation, and I guarantee you’ll live a long, happy life.

According to a Study, Eating Fried Food, Especially French Fries, Will Shorten Your Lifespan

**But did you know that fried potatoes are especially unhealthy for you?**

Now, before you give up all fried potatoes forever, there is some good news.

Fried food is still unhealthy

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