HEALTH RISKS

        INSTANT NOODLES COULD POSE

HEALTH RISKS 

 

Recent research has shown that significant consumption of instant noodles may increase a person’s risk for cardio metabolic syndrome, especially in women. The findings were recently published n the journal of Nutrition.

          The research focused primarily on South Korea, which has the highest per-capita number of instant noodle consumers in the world. In recent years, South Koreans have experienced a rapid increase in health problems, specifically heart disease, and a growing number of overweight adults. Such changes could lead to increased mortality due to cardiovascular disease, as well as increased health care costs.

“While instant noodle intake is greater in Asian communities, the association between instant noodle consumption and metabolic syndrome has not been widely studied, “said Dr. Hyun joon Shin, clinical cardiology fellow at Baylor University Medical Center and a nutrition epidemiology doctoral student at Harvard School of Public Health.

Dr. Shin, who led the study n behalf of the Baylor Heart and Vascular Hospital (BHVH), found that eating instant noodles two or more times a week was associated with cardio metabolic syndrome, which raises a person’s likelihood  of developing heart disease and other conditions, such as  diabetes and stroke.

Dr. Shin also found that those results were more prevalent n women. He said that can likely be attributed to biological differences (such as sex hormones and metabolism) between the sexes, as well as obesity and metabolic syndrome componenet5s. IN addition, men and women’s varied eating habits and differences in the accuracy of food reporting may play a role in the gender gap.

Another potential factor n the gender difference is a chemical called bisphenol A (BPA), which is used for packaging the noodles in Styrofoam containers. Studies have shown that BPA interferes with the way hormones send messages through the body, specifically estrogen.

“This research is significant since many people are consuming instant  noodles  without  knowing possible health risks,” Dr. Shin said, “My hope is that this study can  lay a foundation for future research about the health effects of instant noodle consumption.”