Made of corn, palm oil, and petroleum, this gooey mix can't spoil, and it often replaces dairy products in baked goods. They're typically made from red meats high in saturated fats, and they contain high levels of advanced glycation end products (AGEs): inflammatory compounds that are created when these processed meats are dried, smoked, and cooked at high temperatures. According to a 2015 review published in the journal Advances in Nutrition, experts concluded that "sustained exposure to [AGEs] gradually erodes native defenses, setting the stage for abnormally high [oxidative stress] and inflammation, the precursors of disease.". Drink This! Brown rice is not only filling, but a good source of resistant starch, which researchers at South Dakota State University have linked to improvements in gut bacteria, potentially lowering consumers' risk of diabetes and obesity along the way. The baby foods, in contrast, had up to 91 times the arsenic level, up to 177 times the lead level, up to 69 times the cadmium level, and up to 5 times the mercury level. When reaching for a bottled coffee beverage, you're probably more concerned with how under-caffeinated you're feeling and less about what could be lurking under that label. Eat This! These sugary little ice cream accessories are little more than sugar, hydrogenated oils, artificial colors, and actual wax, just like your favorite candle. Instead: Indulge your sweet tooth without sabotaging your health by opting for a Fruit & Nut Delight Kind Bar instead. Short for polyoxyethylene-(20)-sorbitan monostearate, this emulsifier is widely used in the food industry. Eat This! The investigators examined a wide range of rice cereals, purees, puffs and juices from Nurture (which sells Happy Family Organics), Beech-Nut Nutrition, Hain Celestial Group (which sells the Earth’s Best Organics brand) and Gerber. Not willing to ditch your spread? Rice, a common ingredient in baby foods, also tends to have high levels of arsenic. Instead: Celebrate an occasion and the fact that you're not harming your health with excessive sugar by picking up a box of our best from our list of 20 Popular Box Cake Mixes—Ranked. Unhealthy Ingredient: Monosodium glutamate. Unfortunately, countless vegetarian options are not the clean dream you think. Start every day on the right foot with the 56 Smoothies for Weight Loss! Eat This! A spoonful of natural peanut butter on some Mary's Gone Crackers, which are vegan, organic, gluten-free, and made with whole grains, can keep you full without all the extras you don't want. Turn down the heat, since burnt meat contains higher concentrations of HCAs. So, go grilled whenever you can or bake your foods in the oven. "We know that heavy metals are found in nature ... they are bound to contaminate nature's ingredients," she said. "Avoid them anytime you're able to!" When you grab a veggie burger, you should look for a solid substitution for the minimally-processed, beef-based patty. Instead: Check out Amy's Vegetarian Organic Refried Beans, Light in Sodium for a better alternative. It has the same creaminess you'd get from traditional whipped cream, but with no added fat or sugar, and a much more digestible recipe. Sugar alcohols are sugar substitutes have been shown to cause bloating and other gastrointestinal distress. Food developers know that when foods melt quickly, it tricks the brain into thinking you're not eating as many calories. Eat This! If you think you're getting a better deal by opting for sugar-free recipes, think again; the artificial sweeteners used in sugar-free protein bars have been linked to weight gain and cardiometabolic risk, according to a recent study in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Instead: Start your morning off on the right foot by opting for some unflavored oats instead. The sweetener has also been connected to decreased sleep quality and poor gut health—a recipe for weight gain. Eat This! Eat This! A butter croissant from Dunkin' Donuts has 19 grams of fat (24 percent of your daily value), 340 calories, and 8 grams of saturated fat (40 percent of your daily value)—and you're likely eating all that before you even make it to work in the morning. When you char meat, something called heterocyclic amines, or HCAs, develop when the creatine, sugars, and amino acids in meat react to your grill's high temperatures. Instead: Thomas' "nooks and crannies" are low in sugar, but still have a rather high sodium count, so having just one half at a time you can spruce up with butter and mashed blackberries isn't too bad of a compromise. This chocolate bar made the list of our unhealthiest foods in both 2017 and 2018, thanks to the fact that it blends fatty chocolate with salty pretzels, creating a saturated-fat-and-sugar knockout. Oats have plenty of fiber, and if you add in some fruit, you're getting a well-balanced breakfast. Instead: Get some unsweetened whole-grain bread, a few slices of preservative-free meat, and pop it on a panini press! According to a statement from Walmart, however, the company did provide information and "invite more dialogue" in 2019, but never heard back from the subcommittee. Gross, right? Instead: Luckily, researchers from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine found that when people cut out high-AGE foods like processed and fried foods, markers of inflammation in their body diminished. In fact, even seemingly healthy brands like McCann's Steel Cut Irish Oatmeal can pack in 21 grams of the sweet stuff into their Apple Cinnamon Cups. It is present on the Olive Garden menu, however, and it comes in at 1,010 calories, proving this is another all-American-version of a classic dish you're better off without. Unhealthy Ingredient: Oversized portions of beef, It was known as a low-cost dish in the '50s, '60s, and '70s, making it a common convenient dinner option back then, but it has more or less lost some value as a family meal staple. Unhealthy Ingredients: High fructose corn syrup, caramel coloring. Kraft Singles are packed with sodium citrate, which can cause muscle spasms and may be unhealthy to individuals with kidney health issues. Coffee based drinks, tea based drinks. Unhealthy Ingredients: Soybean oil, palm oil, mono and diglycerides. You won't ever see these items marked as an "Eat This." The baby foods, in contrast, had up to 91 times the arsenic level, up to 177 times the lead level, up to 69 times the cadmium level, and up to 5 times the mercury level. Rice is the seed of the grass species Oryza sativa (Asian rice) or less commonly Oryza glaberrima (African rice). Plus, the BPA used to package many kinds of fruit cocktail has been linked to endocrine issues and obesity, too, making this supposedly healthy snack a poor choice for anyone. Just make sure you're using exact measurements so you're not overdoing it, as one tablespoon has 120 calories. Experiments have verified the fact that milled rice, rather than whole brown rice, results in the highest mineral absorption from rice. Rather, the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) recommends focusing on reducing your intake of processed meats to 18 ounces (or six 3-ounce servings of meat) a week. A serving of these bean-based chips has 4 grams of belly-filling fiber, so you'll definitely be able to put the bag down once you've eaten your fill. Eat This! Unhealthy Ingredient: Sodium, food additives. For example, one 14-ounce bottle of Gold Peak Almond Toffee Coffee Drink contains a staggering 270 calories and 53 grams of sugar. Instead: Grab some oatmeal instead to start out your day. Instead: Luckily, manufacturers have a limit on the amount of nitrites they use and are required to add antioxidants, such as vitamin C, which a review in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found helps to inhibit nitrosamine formation. Instead: The best syrup for your waistline is a Grade A Medium Amber pure maple syrup. Instead: Foods coated with real chocolate. Unhealthy Ingredients: Sodium citrate and phosphate. Unhealthy Ingredients: Sulfites, added sugars or fruit juice infusions, vegetable oil. 9 mg/100 g. Rice based snacks. It turns out, this creamy topping is many things, and cream is only actually one of them. Unhealthy Ingredients: Titanium dioxide, caramel color, artificial colors, propylene glycol. Sprout did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The FDA in August finalized guidance to industry, setting an action level of 100 parts per billion inorganic arsenic in infant rice cereal. The subcommittee said Nurture, Beech-Nut, Hain, and Gerber complied, showing their baby foods contained high levels of arsenic, lead, and cadmium. Coffee creamers can also have synthetic additives like mono and diglycerides. While there is zero trans fat listed on the frozen desserts' nutrition labels, the presence of soybean oil and hydrogenated soybean oil is still concerning, as this type of oil has been linked to weight gain. Nurture also took issue with "the many inaccuracies, select data usage, and tone bias" in the report, according to a statement. Barbecue sauce may be the condiment of choice for people who love something smoky and sweet, but it can do damage to your waistline. Banned in the United Kingdom and Canada, potassium bromate is still lurking in some U.S. foods such as pizza, wraps, rolls, bread crumbs, and bagel chips, according to a 2015 analysis by the non-profit Environmental Working Group (EWG). Instead: You don't have to go too far out of your way to find pickles without this additive. like a slice of sugary, chemical-laden cake, right? They're usually just from fruit juice concentrate. Unhealthy Ingredient: Bleaching chemicals such as azodicarbonamide. Busy mornings and grab-and-go breakfasts are practically synonymous—so it's easy to see the appeal of store-bought smoothies. Eat This! Even if you're sharing these, this is not a snack you should be indulging in. Instead: Kashi Blueberry Waffles. Unhealthy Ingredients: Sugar, hydrogenated vegetable oil, sodium. Did you know that just 2 tablespoons of salad dressings—like Ken's Steak House Fat Free Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette—contain just as much sugar as a Krispy Kreme Glazed Donut? The intake of inorganic arsenic from long grain rice and rice-based baby food in Finland - low safety margin warrants follow up Food Chem. Using a premade pie crust might save you some time when you're baking, but what's on store shelves is anything but healthy for you. On a mission to help you understand exactly what exactly is in your food, and why it's bad, we put together this list of the least nutritious foods on the planet that are so toxic, they just wreck your body. Georgia State University researchers previously linked the emulsifier with low-grade inflammation in the intestine. Another unsettling finding came from a case study of a 50-year-old construction worker; having too many energy drinks could destroy your liver. Blue Diamond Natural Almond Nut-Thins in Cheddar Cheese, don't actually have any real cream in them, Nothin' But Chocolate Coconut Almond Granola Cookies. But a small cup of Mott's applesauce with cinnamon comes in at 24 grams of sugar and features high fructose corn syrup listed as the second ingredient. Even if you topped them with a tablespoon of syrup, you'd still take in fewer calories and less fat and sugar than you would had you opted for the muffin. To help lower-quality fish retain moisture and to lessen the amount of water expelled during thawing, manufacturers soak fish in a bath of sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP)—as they do in Mrs. Paul's Beer Battered Fillets. Eat This! Eat This! The report also blamed the Trump administration for learning through a "secret industry presentation" in August 2019 that baby food ingredient testing is inadequate — and doing nothing in response. Instead: While nothing beats homemade soup, if you're pressed for time, try a canned version like Pacific Organic Reduced Sodium Chicken Noodle Soup that is not only much lower in sodium, but contains simple ingredients you actually want to see in your soup, such as cooked chicken, chicken broth, peas, carrots, and spices. Not only that, but they are better for you in a variety of other ways, too. Homemade, healthy nuggets. 21 Best Healthy Cooking Hacks of All Time, 15 New Healthy Frozen Foods that Make Clean Eating a Breeze, 20 Restaurant Desserts With More Salt Than A Bag of Pretzels, 20 Foods Pretending To Be Something They're Not, 30 Easy Ways to Stop Eating so Much Sugar. It actually says "Made With Whole Grain" on the front, and by that they mean whole grain flour is listed as the third ingredient: behind regular old white flour and water. Red Baron's Classic Crust 4 Cheese Pizza has ingredients such as L-Cysteine hydrochloride (a salt used to treat overdoses) and "ammonium sulfate" (a commonly-used lawn fertilizer), along with 720 milligrams of sodium per serving, while Tombstone's Frozen Pepperoni Pizza contains BHT and BHA, so you're not really safe no matter which popular brand you go with. 1,5 mg/100 ml. The only FDA standard for metals in baby food relates specifically to infant rice cereal, and even that standard "is far too high to protect against the neurological effects on children," the report says. Making biscuits from scratch can take forever, but the majority of the packaged varieties of bagels and muffins are chock-full of sodium and sugar, a double whammy that is bad for your waistline and your overall health. But taking this shortcut could cost you in the health department. Typically dubbed a healthy, soothing meal, soup truly is one of the least suspicious diet saboteurs of them all; however, that's not the case with canned brands. Try Red Yeast Rice. Eat This! When you're in full control of the ingredients, that's always the best-case scenario. You'll find this additive in Turkey Hill Light Recipe, Vanilla Bean. This jerky has upwards of 700 milligrams of blood-pressure-raising sodium, which is more than four times what you'd find in the same serving of chips. To discover other items you should avoid adding to the pot on the stove, check out these The 20 Worst Ingredients for Weight Loss. Unhealthy Ingredients: Carrageenan, soybean oil, mono and diglycerides, Hot Pockets' ability to be both the temperature of molten lava while simultaneously frozen defies everything we know about science, and yet, people are still eating them. If you feel nostalgic while out to eat and order this while you're dining out, the dish will most likely be filled with fat and extra sodium (especially if it comes with a ketchup-based sauce). Cheesecake Factory's bruléed French toast has nearly 3,000 calories, which is more than a day's worth of calories in your first meal of the day. Instead: This will take a little investigative work on your part, but take a moment to scan the ingredients list next time you're at the market. Exposure to heavy metals in childhood is linked to permanent dips in IQ, an increased risk of future … (And you're typically roasting your sausages on a flame-flickering grill and bacon in a frying pan, right?). Eat This! Instead: We uncovered tons of cheesecake recipes you can try out at home that won't kill your waistline, and if you're looking for a creamier alternative, you can also get your sweet fix with a Greek yogurt parfait. Mix up some preservatives, corn syrup, and dyes and you've got… a sundae topping? For our best bets, check out We Tested 10 of the Peanut Butters, and This Is The Best! Most some loaves contain a small amount of actual whole grains mixed with unhealthy refined flour, according to Alissa Rumsey MS, RD. You should also watch out for dried fruits that have added sugars—without water, dried fruits have a higher concentration of sugar than their hydrated counterparts, and really don't need extra of the blood-sugar-spiking stuff. This refreshing pick-me-up skips those high-calorie ingredients and gets you more of what you really want: sweet, sweet caffeine. Instead: Go with a traditional waffle you can whip up at home and make sure to top with fruit and pure maple syrup. There aren't any dairy products used in Oreo cookies, which isn't necessarily a bad thing for those who eat a dairy-free diet, but it's important to note the ingredients that are present are anything but good for you. Eat This! Instead: Opt for some infused water instead and you'll save yourself a huge number of calories, a ton of sugar, and keep those kidneys working—we hear they're pretty important, after all. But even if you buy them at the grocery store, you might not be safe. Instead: Healthy frosting is as easy to make as it is delicious. Not enough to keep you away? When you're missing out on creamy milk, manufacturers turn to the chemistry lab to make up for the lack of flavor and texture. Unhealthy Ingredient: It's found in so many processed and packaged foods, but soybean oil may be just as bad for you as sugar. Instead: It's best to just make your own pizza! 35 Most Popular Cookies in America—Ranked! Also made with corn syrup and sugar, this sauce is the equivalent of pouring almost four sugar packets on your pulled chicken or bratwurst. It's completely understandable if you're trying to reel in your sweet tooth a bit—just don't use sugar-free sweets as a crutch. Unhealthy Ingredients: Sugar, high fructose corn syrup, and yellow #5. Instead: Get your dried fruits from a retailer like Whole Foods, which says that all of their dried fruits are 100 percent sulfate-free. When you consider that they can last up to three years in their high fructose corn syrup bath before they even get near their expiration date, you'll definitely want to put them back on the shelf. Instead: If you're going to indulge, make sure you do it at home where you can make your own steak or chicken and bean nachos for far fewer calories, fat, and sodium than any you would order at a restaurant. Because the flavor is so concentrated, a little goes a long way, saving you calories and sugar. Whoever invented the Gatorade Dunk—the tradition in which winning sports teams dump coolers of the stuff on their coaches—was really on to something. Begin with a very small amount of a single-ingredient pureed food (about 1 … Instead: Swap in ground turkey or chicken instead of beef for a leaner meat substitute, and try your hand at making this dish at home to keep sodium and fat in check. Palm oil is high in saturated fats that increase levels of bad cholesterol. Start with whole-wheat pizza dough, a low-sodium marinara sauce, a light sprinkle of cheese, and healthy toppings, and what you come up with. Say goodbye to added sugars—and goodbye to your belly—with the Zero Sugar Diet! 1 mg/100 ml. Eat This! Instead: M&M fans should check out Unreal's Milk Chocolate Gems. to choose a smart alternative, but we'd recommend reducing your intake of added sweeteners in general. Unhealthy Ingredients: Sugar, corn syrup, sorbitol, soybean oil, BHT. They're also packed with sodium phosphate, an ingredient used to prevent crystallization of meat and dairy products, which has been linked to an increased risk of bone demineralization, osteoporosis, and kidney health issues. Rice is grown in water, and arsenic from the soil dissolves when it comes in contact with water, he said. A leading-edge research firm focused on digital transformation. Don't let its reduced fat content fool you: low-fat peanut butter is in no way a health food. Most importantly, they're free of those tricky vanishing calories that cause us to overeat. Here's why you should be concerned: A University of Maryland study found energy drinks to be 11 percent more corrosive to your teeth than regular soda. Eat This! Instead: Instead of eating those preservative-laden pre-seasoned rice mixes, you can easily save both your money and your health by making a batch of easy-to-prepare brown rice. Instead: Organic chicken breasts cut into pieces, coated with egg and breadcrumbs, and baked in your oven. It's a similar product, but free of all the scary chemicals. Eat This! Looking to add a little zing to your drink? Uncle Ben may not be such a good guy after all. Brands like Mio are made up almost entirely of artificial ingredients. 19 Unhealthiest Restaurant Appetizers in America—Ranked! Eat This! Linking to a non-federal website does not constitute an endorsement by CDC or any of its employees of the sponsors or the information and products presented on the website. Instead: If you're heading out to Chipotle for lunch and go for the burrito bowl, make sure you keep what you're getting in your bowl light and opt not to get a tortilla on the side or any chips. Cereal bars. Each packet comes with two cookies and with the chocolate chip and double chocolate chip flavors, you'll be able to satisfy your sweet tooth with a filling dessert option. Instead: When it comes to seafood, always abandon ship on fried fish and opt for grilled instead. Other negative side effects of adding STPP to fish include significantly increasing the levels of sodium in your food—which can counteract the countless positive heart-health benefits of consuming fish in the first place—as well as increasing your intake of dietary phosphates, which are connected to increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease in patients with chronic kidney disease or prior heart problems, according to research in Archives of Internal Medicine.