Fried foods up your chance of cardiovascular problems
Regularly eating fried foods — french fries, fried chicken and the like — ups your chance of having a major cardiovascular problem, such as a heart attack or stroke, by 28%, according to new research.
Published in the journal Heart, the report also notes that the more you eat, the greater your risk, with each additional weekly serving of a half-cup of fried food increasing that risk by 3%.
The research combines data from 17 studies involving a half-million adults tracked for about a decade, and it compared cardiovascular outcomes among those who ate the most and least amounts of fried foods.
Besides heart attack and stroke, heightened risk for heart failure and coronary artery disease (by 37% and 22%, respectively) was linked to fried food consumption, too.
The health-related negatives of fried food include generally higher calories and fat, as well as extra salt and a tastiness that often leads people to eat multiple servings, which contributes to weight problems.
Consumption of fried foods has also been linked to diabetes and high blood pressure.
To achieve a more hearthealthy eating plan, health experts suggest including a variety of fruits and vegetables, whole grains and low-fat dairy products, opting for skinless poultry and fish and lean cuts of other meats, and choosing to bake, roast, grill, steam, poach or broil rather than fry the foods you prepare.