Instant noodles or processed noodles are staple food in many cultures. Mostly those cultures include cash strapped college students and artists. Apart from them, children, adults also love these instant noodles as they are easy to make. They are also very cheap and make an excellent meal for people looking for quelling that bout of hunger.

With millions of packets sold every year in many countries, these noodles have a market of billions of dollars. Also many documented cases of effects of noodles of health have come forth. Hence the scientists decided to conduct experiments on instant noodles.

The Experiment

Dr. Braden Kuo of Massachusetts General Hospital used a pill sized camera in order to record and view what happens after eating instant noodles in the digestive tract. He used a very common brand of noodles called Ramen noodles. He filmed a total of 32 hours of footage.

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The result

Dr.Kuo found out that even after 2 hours after eating them, the instant noodles are intact. In comparison, homemade noodles had started to get digested.

This means that instant noodles put tremendous strain on the digestive system. This makes the digestive tract work hard to process the noodles. Staying in the system for so long, noodles also impact the nutrient absorption; thought noodles don’t have any nutrients
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The noodles are also very high in additives like toxic preservative Tertiary-Butyl HydroQuinone (TBHQ).

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Tertiary-Butyl Hydro-Quinone (TBHQ)

Tertiary-Butyl Hydroquinone (TBHQ) is a byproduct of petroleum. Though it is listed as antioxidants, it is a synthetic chemical with anti-oxidant properties, not a natural one. TBHQ is used for preserving foods and increasing the shelf life of food products, by preventing oxidation of fats and oils.

It is a very common ingredients used in lots of foods such as McDonald’s chicken nuggets, Cheez-It crackers, Wheat Thins crackers, Taco Bell beans and many other. It is also found in pesticide products and varnishes.

The safe consumption limit of TBHQ is varied from food to food. In US, the FDA has TBHQ at the maximum of 0.02% of its oil and fat content.

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Effects of Tertiary-Butyl Hydroquinone (TBHQ)

Tertiary-Butyl Hydroquinone (TBHQ) has many side effects with just 1 gram of TBHQ can cause Nausea and vomiting, Tinnitus (ringing in ears), Delirium, sense of suffocation. It can also affect your liver and reproduction.
Other contents of instant noodles

Another harmful product in instant noodles is Monosodium Glutamate (MSG). MSG is an excitotoxin, means it over excites the nerve cells of the body to the point of damage and even death of those cells. This can also lead to brain dysfunction, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and more.

MSG is also called the obesity drug as it is used to fatten up mice in experiments.

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One can indulge in eating instant noodles once in a while and it won’t cause much damage, but long term addiction can really cause serious damage. Eat naturally grown foods that are void of any contamination. Include vegetables and fresh fruits in your diet as they contain fibers which are essential for your digestive system to work easily and aids in quick digestion of foods.

Don’t rely solely on instant noodles and processed foods to fill your stomach in those mid snack hunger pangs. Try fruits, salads and other natural food products that are easy to digest and also quenches that hungry feeling.