Many times it's not the food which we consume that's stopping us from losing weight, it is the sauce we slather over the food. Today we're going to be looking at most likely the guiltiest condiment culprits... ketchup!
I enjoy tomato ketchup, I use it everything. So this particular one strikes a personal chord for me.
Tomatoes are pretty good for you, aren't they?
Ketchup is mainly made using tomatoes. Therefore you would believe that it's not that bad for you. All of us know that it's also filled with sugar, but tomatoes are lovely wholesome veggies, correct? So at the very least you are receiving the nutrients from those...
Well not when they've been boiled to within an inch of their lives!
Ketchup is basically produced using incredibly over cooked tomatoes which have shed all of their nutritional value, some water and lots of sugar.
The sugar that you find in ketchup is worth a closer look. Because, although this starts out as sugar (which is already unhealthy) before being added to the ketchup it's refined into high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) which is much worse!
In Additional to this, it is packed with flavourings, like MSG, that make us want it more.
Therefore , ketchup is unhealthy. It's only nutritious ingredient (tomatoes) has been stripped of its value and everything else has been linked to many health issues, like...
High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is connected to
- Obesity
- Diabetes
- Heart Disease
- Cancer
.. and it has absolutely no nutritional value whatsoever. It just makes food sweet, so you eat more.
Is MSG really bad for your health?
If you do a little research on MSG, there are many articles saying that it has a negative rep but it really isn't that bad for you. Then you will stumble into this from Michael Galitzer...
“It’s probably one of the most harmful substances that one can eat.”
I truthfully feel that there's a little bit of a conspiracy here, seeking to avoid the majority of people from obtaining the truth about MSG. So that we carry on eating products that are packed with it.
MSG may cause 'Leaky Gut' which certainly sounds revolting and is connected to...
- Bloating
- Gas
- Diarrhea
- Stomach pain
I have to admit, on quite a few occasions I've had all of those, specifically after indulging in a greasy takeaway.
Healthier Ketchup alternatives
Anyway, let's get back to ketchup. We love it. We would like to keep eating it. But we don't want 'Leaky Gut'.
The greatest substitute for shop bought ketchup is to make some in your kitchen.
In case you fancy giving that a go, then check out this video from "Cooking With Plants"
If you basically don't have time for that, there are a couple of ketchups which are a healthier option.
Back in 2010 ConAgra eliminated the HFCS from their tomato ketchup (Hunt's Ketchup) but they added it back in a few years later. Why? Honestly, I think that they were wanting to cash-in on peoples growing concern of the dangers of HFCS and expecting that their much healthier option would earn them a higher share of the ketchup market.
I don't for a single minute believe that they did it out of genuine concern public health.
Obviously, it didn't do the job, simply because they added it back. But men and women are constantly getting more health aware, so maybe they might give it one more go when they determine the public will prefer to buy it. It's certainly worth picking up the bottle and going through the ingredients every so often.
Another option, but not really a tasty one, is to use tomato puree. Within recipes this works perfectly, but like a condiment it's really not too nice. Tomato puree is not as sweet and has a very powerful flavour. But it's worth giving it a try, put in a little sweetener and it'll be much more agreeable. I'm pretty sure that whatever you do will be a great deal healthier than any kind of branded ketchup!
Simply don't boil all of the nutrition away, load it with HFCS and lace it with 'gut-leaking' MSG! Aside of that, go crazy... even adding a touch of sugar will still produce a healthier ketchup than the one you're likely using now.
Tomato puree (mixed along with a sweetener) will be a good option to making your own ketchup as it lasts a lot longer than fresh tomatoes, takes up much less room within your refrigerator and its an easy task to rustle up in a couple of seconds when required. Try it, and let me know how it goes.