Fried foods are often full of fat and may fill you up with unneeded and possibly dangerous types of it. When you order or are buying prepared foods, look for food that is baked instead. Generally you should avoid food that has been fried, unless you know the kind of oil that is being used.
When frying, it is best to use olive or peanut oils because they do not so easily break down. Olive oil also has antioxidant qualities which may reduce the risk of diseases such as cancer. Olive oil can be reused many (up to 40) times, so although it is a little more expensive it turns out to be cheaper in the long run.
It is best not to fry with polyunsaturated oils such as corn, safflower or sunflower oil. If you do, throw any excess oil away as reheating these oils can form some nasty chemical compounds. If vegetable oils are cooked at high temperatures in the frying pan or deep fryer, oxidation occurs rapidly: this is the main argument against fried foods. Slow oxidation underlies the rancidity of fat and rancid fats may increase your cancer risk.
Fried Foods Avoidance can help with the following
Premature/Signs of Aging
Cooking foods at high temperatures results in a “browning” effect, where sugars react with proteins to form glycotoxins. Aging is regarded as a slow cooking process also, where these same glycotoxins form in various tissues of the body. Consuming these foods hastens this process.
Multiple Sclerosis / Risk
The Swank diet includes strict avoidance of fried food and trans-fatty acids.
Increased Risk of Ovarian Cancer
16,000 Seventh Day Adventist women who consumed eggs at least 3 times weekly, had a 3 times greater risk of fatal ovarian cancer than did women who ate eggs less than once weekly. Fish, chicken and potatoes were also positively associated with fatal ovarian cancer when they were fried. Consumption of fried eggs showed the strongest association with fatal ovarian cancer, perhaps due to interference with cholesterol biosynthesis and consequently the manufacture of ovarian hormones from the production of cytotoxic oxidation products of cholesterol. [ JAMA 254(3): pp.356-7, 1985]
Key
| May do some good |
| Likely to help |
| Highly recommended |
Glossary
Antioxidant
A chemical compound that slows or prevents oxygen from reacting with other compounds. Some antioxidants have been shown to have cancer-protecting potential because they neutralize free radicals. Examples include vitamins C and E, alpha lipoic acid, beta carotene, the minerals selenium, zinc, and germanium, superoxide dismutase (SOD), coenzyme Q10, catalase, and some amino acids, like cystiene. Other nutrient sources include grape seed extract, curcumin, gingko, green tea, olive leaf, policosanol and pycnogenol.
Cancer
Refers to the various types of malignant neoplasms that contain cells growing out of control and invading adjacent tissues, which may metastasize to distant tissues.
Polyunsaturated
Polyunsaturated fats or oils. Originate from vegetables and are liquid at room temperature. These oils are a good source of the unsaturated fatty acids. They include flaxseed with added vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), sunflower oil, safflower oil, and primrose oil.