It's not always the food we eat that is ruining our diet, it is the condiments that we put on the food. Today we'll be taking a look at probably the biggest condiment culprits... tomato ketchup!
I really like ketchup, I put it on everythingthat I eat. So this one is very personal for me.
Tomatoes are good for you, aren't they?
Ketchup is mostly made from tomatoes. Therefore you should think that it's not too bad for you. We all recognize that it's also filled with sugar, but tomatoes are vegetables, correct? So at the very least you'll be going to be getting the nutrition from those...
Unfortunately not when they've been boiled to within an inch of their lives!
Ketchup is essentially produced using really over cooked tomatoes that have unfortunately lost all of their natural value, some water and plenty of sugar.
The sugar that's added to ketchup is worth a closer inspection. Because, although it starts out as sugar (which is already pretty unhealthy) before being added to the bottle it is processed into high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) which is much worse!
On top of this, it's stuffed with flavourings, like MSG, that make us want it more.
Therefore , ketchup is not a good idea if you're trying to eat healthy. It's only healthy ingredient (tomatoes) has been stripped of its value and all of the additional stuff has been linked to countless health issues, for example...
High Fructose Corn Syrup is linked to
- Obesity
- Diabetes
- Heart Disease
- Cancer
.. and contains absolutely no nutritional value whatsoever. It just makes stuff sweet, so you eat more.
Is MSG really bad for your health?
If you do a little research on MSG, you can find a great deal of articles saying that it has a negative reputation but it really isn't that bad for you. Then you will stumble into this little insight from Michael Galitzer...
“It’s probably one of the most harmful substances that one can eat.”
I honestly believe that there's a bit of a conspiracy here, hoping to avoid the majority of people from discovering the reality about MSG. So that we keep eating products which are full of it.
MSG can lead to 'Leaky Gut' which sounds revolting and is related to...
- Bloating
- Gas
- Diarrhea
- Abdominal pain
I have to admit, on several occasions I have had all of those, specifically after eating a yummy Chinese takeaway.
Healthy Ketchup alternatives
So, let's get back to ketchup. We all love it. We want to keep consuming it. But we don't really want 'Leaky Gut'.
The best alternative to shop purchased ketchup is to make your own.
In case you fancy giving that a try, then watch this video from "Cooking With Plants"
In case you just don't have time for that, there are a couple of ketchups that are a more healthy option.
Way back in 2010 ConAgra removed the HFCS from their ketchup (Hunt's Ketchup) but unfortunately they added it back in a couple of years later. Why? Well, I think that they were wanting to cash in on peoples growing knowledge of the dangers of HFCS and expecting that their much healthier option would earn them a more significant share of the ketchup market.
I don't for a single second believe that they did it out of concern the public's health.
Obviously, it didn't do the job, simply because they added it back. But folks are constantly getting more health conscious, so maybe they will give it another go when they determine that the public will prefer to buy it. It's definitely worth picking up a bottle and checking the ingredients every so often.
An additional option, but not a very tasty one, is to switch out your reglular ketchup with tomato puree. In recipes this works perfectly, but as a condiment it's a bit strong. Tomato puree isn't as sweet and has a very strong flavour. But it's worth a try, add some sweetener and it'll be much more palitable. I'm pretty certain that whatever you do will be a great deal healthier than any shop-bought ketchup!
Simply don't boil all the nutrition away, cram it with HFCS and lace it with 'gut-leaking' MSG! Aside of that, experiment... even adding a little bit of sugar will still produce a more healthy ketchup than the one you're most likely using now.
Tomato puree (mixed with a sweetener) is a good alternative to making your own ketchup because it lasts a lot longer than fresh tomatoes, takes up less room within your fridge and its an easy task to rustle up in a few seconds when required. Try it, and let me know how it tastes.