2. French Fries
Ingredients (10): Potatoes, canola oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, natural beef flavour, hydrolyzed wheat, hydrolyzed milk, citric acid (an anti-oxidant to keep the oil fresh), dimethylpolysiloxane (an anti-foaming agent that keeps oil from splattering), dextrose, sodium acid pyrophosphate (keeps the potatoes from going gray), salt, corn oil and TBHQ (an anti-oxidant to preserve the freshness of the oil as it travels to the restaurant).
Sodium acid pyrophosphate is used to give french fries an appealing color. Unfortunately, it’s also known to cause irritation of the mouth, skin and respiratory and gastrointestinal tract (11).
Dextrose is a lab-made version of glucose derived from potatoes or GMO corn that is used in medicine to treat dangerously low levels of blood sugar. However, in healthy individuals, the chemical causes hyperkalemia, hyperglycemia and edema (12).
3. Strawberry Milkshake
Ingredients (13): Milkfat and nonfat milk, sugar, sweet whey, high-fructose corn syrup, guar gum, monoglycerides and diglycerides, cellulose gum, sodium phosphate, carrageenan, citric acid, E129 and artificial strawberry flavor.
Mono and diglycerides: are food additives used to create a creamy texture in baked goods, dairy products and nut butter (14). On their own, theses trans fats contribute to heart disease, inflammation, diabetes and obesiety.
However, more often than not, they contain nickel, tartaric acid, synthetic lactic acid, ricinus fatty acids and sodium hydroxide, each of which is a ticking health bomb on its own (15).
Sugar and corn sugar (high fructose corn syrup).The body breaks down sugar for energy. Corn syrup, also known as high fructose corn syrup, is much less healthy than natural sugar sources like fruits and honey.
The liver uses fructose to create fat, meaning that consuming lots of fructose contributes to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, which affects 30% of adults in the United States and 70% and 90% of obese and diabetic Americans.
Left untreated, the condition causes scarring and permanent damage to the liver. High fructose syrup is also linked to high triglycerides, high cholesterol, visceral fat build-up, high blood pressure, insulin resistance, high free radical production, metabolic syndrome and heart disease (16).
Carrageenan: is a natural ingredient known to cause digestive problems, gut irritation, and even cancer. “Carrageenan predictably causes inflammation, which can lead to ulcerations and bleeding,” explains veteran carrageenan researcher Joanne Tobacman, MD, associate professor of clinical medicine at the University of Illinois School of Medicine at Chicago. Concerns over its uses as a thickening agent has been vocalized by health professionals since the 1960s.
If that’s not enough, the “strawberry” flavoring contains no real strawberries, but a cocktail of chemicals instead, including: Amyl acetate, amyl butyrate, amyl valerate, anethol, anisyl formate, benzyl acetate, benzyl isobutyrate, butyric acid, cinnamyl isobutyrate, cinnamyl valerate, cognac essential oil, diacetyl, dipropyl ketone, ethyl butyrate, ethyl cinnamate, ethyl heptanoate, ethyl heptylate, ethyl lactate, ethyl methylphenylglycidate, ethyl nitrate, ethylpropionate, ethyl valerate, heliotropin, hydroxyphrenyl-2-butanone (10% solution in alcohol), ionone, isobutyl anthranilate, isobutyl butyrate, lemon essential oil, maltol, 4-methylace-tophenone, methyl anthranilate, methyl benzoate, methyl cinnamate, methyl heptine carbonate, methyl naphtyl ketone, methyl salicylate, mint essential oil, neroli essential oil, nerolin, neryl isobutyrate, orris butter, phenethyl alcohol, undecalactone, rum ether, rose, vanillin and solvent.
And that’s just the beginning, there are many other products at McDonald’s hiding terrible ingredients with horrible health effects, never mind their lack of nutritional value and high fat and sugar content.
Needless to say, your kids should never snack on a happy meal, give them fresh, nutritious food instead!
sources:
[1]https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food/product_nutrition.chickenfish.483.chicken-mcnuggets-4-piece.html
[2]https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/potential-tbhq-dangers
[3]https://www.fda.gov/ohrms/dockets/ac/04/briefing/4035b1_comment-04.htm
[4]https://blog.bobsredmill.com/featured-articles/modified-food-starch-demystified/
[5]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3808112/
[6]https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a609019.html
[7]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2462865/
[8]https://www.medicaldaily.com/silly-putty-ingredient-has-made-its-way-many-fast-food-chains-explains-food-blogger-vani-hari-286712
[9]https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/adoption-of-genetically-engineered-crops-in-the-us/recent-trends-in-ge-adoption.aspx
[10]https://globalnews.ca/news/1789231/here-are-the-19-ingredients-that-go-into-mcdonalds-french-fries/
[11]https://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/search/a?dbs+hsdb:@term+@DOCNO+377
[12]https://www.healthline.com/health/dextrose#CommonPreparations2
[13]https://www.theguardian.com/news/2006/apr/24/food.foodanddrink
[14]https://articles.chicagotribune.com/1993-04-06/news/9304070040_1_monoglycerides-fatty-diglycerides
[15] https://www.livestrong.com/article/445850-what-is-bad-about-mono-diglycerides/
[16]https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/abundance-of-fructose-not-good-for-the-liver-heart
[17]https://www.prevention.com/food/healthy-eating-tips/carrageenan-natural-ingredient-you-should-ban-your-diet