Everyone wants to eat healthy food. But there are some shocking hidden secrets in common foods we eat daily. We eat some unhealthy food daily. No matter how sophisticated you are about your food intake, you still end up consuming a lot of unwanted substances. What? Why? How? Check this out:
Arsenic:
Rice must be the favourite food of many of us! Even the diet-conscious see it as a pretty safe and healthy food item. But you will be surprised to learn that studies reveal that it may also contain unsafe levels of the toxic substance arsenic. A recent study has suggested that one in five packs of American long-grain rice contain potentially harmful levels of the toxic substance, while others have reported concern for the levels of arsenic in rice milk and baby rice. As per the tests conducted by Consumer Reports, those who ate rice had 44 per cent greater levels of arsenic in their bodies than those who had not.
Insects:
Not so edible, right? I am sure many of you must have felt disgusted after reading it, but that’s what the studies suggest. You’ll be shocked that you may be eating more of them than you think, as well as your fair share of rodent hair over the years. To be more precise, let me state examples like chocolate products may contain an average of 60 insect fragments and one rodent hair per 100g, while citrus fruit juice can contain one maggot per 250ml.
Lead:
Strictly for the ladies! Girls, how often do you get pissed off about the fact that your glossy pout has faded within just few hours? While most of your make eventually smears off on objects throughout the day, but the case is different when it comes to lipstick. It has been recently discovered that the average woman eats a whopping four to nine pounds of lipstick in her lifetime! As per a 2004 study, up to 28 per cent of lipsticks contain chemicals that can cause cancer and a 2007 study by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics found that more than 50 per cent of lipstick brands contained lead which can turn out to be really harmful to your health.
Wood:
Another shocking piece of information from the recent studies! From being an important part of our furniture to being an ingredient of the food we eat, wood is a true shocker! Cellulose (wood pulp) is increasingly added to processed foods to thicken foods, add texture and replace more expensive ingredients like flour and oil. While there is no reported health problems associated with consuming cellulose, it may come as a surprise to many that they are regularly splashing their cash on food products bulked out with wood.
48 Teaspoons of Sugar:
This one is for those health-conscious freaks who can’t even stand the sight of 1 teaspoon of sugar! Irrespective of the conscious efforts you make to limit the amount of sugar in our diets, research has shown that even if you elude desserts and chocolate, you may still be eating well over the recommended maximum sugar intake. According to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, food companies have been increasing the sugar content of processed foods to make them more appetising, meaning that many are unaware of just how much they are eating.
