Not just your pocket, eating out often could be burning a hole in your health too!
Do you eat out at least 4-5 times a week? Are the food-delivery apps on your phone one of the most used ones? Is home-cooked food a novelty that you enjoy only once is a while? Then this is for you!
With easy access to restaurant food – not to forget the vast variety available – eating food ordered from outside has become the norm. It feeds not only our hunger but also our need for convenience and satisfies our cravings to indulge in different cuisines, try new dishes and discover new flavours.
But at what price?
While ordering food from outside is more expensive than cooking at home, it brings with it many other perils that often get overlooked. Here’s a glimpse of why this might not be the best idea for a healthy, nutritionally-balanced diet:
1. Exposure to rancid cooking oils: It is a known fact that using more cooking oil reduces the cooking time of food significantly, making it a method for restaurants to churn out food faster. Furthermore, many restaurants reuse cooking and frying oil to save on costs. According to the regulations by FSSAI, cooking oil cannot be reused more than 3 times – which is still 2 times too many, as once oil is heated, it undergoes physio-chemical and nutritional changes. Reused oil has a higher concentration of trans-fats, releases more free radicals and becomes rancid – all of which have harmful effects on the body
2. More calories and sodium: Because people want good tasting food and restaurants want to cater to the customer’s delights, the food usually has a higher content of seasoning and salt. Processed sauces used in cooking also contain high amounts of sugar and salt, making them an unhealthy choice. Restaurant portions are also usually large that can lead to over-eating and a higher calorie intake
3. Tempting bread baskets, papads and other accompaniments: Many restaurants offer complimentary freebies while you wait for your order. These are empty calories that fill you up and lead to overeating. Furthermore, these accompaniments are usually deep-fried or full of butter and possibly additions you would skip when eating at home
4. Low-quality food: The food business is solely driven by one thing – profits! Nutrition is usually very low on the list of priorities for most restaurants, leading them to often cut corners. Using frozen food, artificial flavouring, low-quality produce are some common techniques employed to make food more cost-effective. The cooking techniques also focus on making the dishes delectable, often destroying the naturally-occurring nutrients of the ingredients in the process.
5. What you see in not always what you get: With no ingredient list available, one cannot really gauge what is on their plate. For example, many pizza companies may use highly processed cheese instead of fresh cheese for added flavour and better cost benefits. Most mass-market ice-cream brands are actually ‘frozen desserts’ (and you can see this printed on their label in fine print!) because they use vegetable fats instead of milk fats in their preparation. These swaps are hard to spot and can often sneak past you unnoticed.
6. Expensive: According to a study conducted by Forbes, eating out costs almost 5 times more than cooking at home. When coupled with all its other ill-effects, it does more harm than good to both your wallet and well-being.
On the other hand, cooking at home has many benefits. Not only does preparing your own food make you a better cook, it allows you to experiment with flavours that suit your palate. By opting for
fresh, nutritional ingredients, you can bridge the nutrient gaps in your diet. People with healthy eating habits live longer and are a lower risk for lifestyle diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.
Akshayakalpa Organic bring to your kitchen a wide variety of organic produce to elevate the flavour and nutrition of your culinary preparations. Choose from organic dairy like milk, cheese, butter, paneer and ghee or additional ingredients like country eggs and curd. Get your hands on the freshest, organic fruits and vegetables grown on chemical-free soil and season your dishes with flavourful herbs for a tantalizing taste. Furthermore, enjoy the convenience of doorstep delivery every day and order as per your needs.
So, what are you waiting for? Don your chef’s hat and start cooking today!
Resources:
