By CECILE BORKHATARIA
Researchers have found a link between eating French fries and a higher risk of death.
A study found that people who ate fried potatoes, for example French fries or hash browns, more than twice a week more than doubled their risk of death.
The study, however, doesn’t prove that eating fried potatoes kills people – it just shows that people who died during the study were more likely to eat fried potatoes more regularly.
A study found that people who ate fried potatoes, for example French fries or hash browns, more than twice a week more than doubled their risk of death
To conduct the study, the researchers tracked the eating habits of 4,440 people ages 45-79 for eight years.
The amount of potatoes they ate (both fried and unfried) was analyzed by asking them to fill out a food-frequency questionnaire.
The questionnaire asked if the participant had eaten friend and unfried potatoes less than once per month, two to three times per month, once a week, twice a week or more than three times per week.
Of the 4,440 people who participated in the study, 236 participants died by the end of the eight-year follow up.
The researchers didn’t find a link between people who ate unfried potatoes and death, but they did find a link between the frequent consumption of fried potatoes and increased risk of death.
Dietitian Jessica Cording told Yahoo Beauty that she wasn’t surprised by these findings.
‘Fried potatoes are a food that provides a lot of calories, sodium, and sometimes trans fat, but contributes minimal nutrition,’ says Cording.
‘They don’t actively do the body many favors in that respect.’
To conduct the study, the researchers tracked the eating habits of 4,440 people ages 45-79 for eight years.
The amount of potatoes they ate (both fried and unfried) was analyzed by asking them to fill out a food-frequency questionnaire.
The questionnaire asked if the participant had eaten friend and unfried potatoes less than once per month, two to three times per month, once a week, twice a week or more than three times per week.
Of the 4,440 people who participated in the study, 236 participants died by the end of the eight-year follow up.
The researchers didn’t find a link between people who ate unfried potatoes and death, but they did find a link between the frequent consumption of fried potatoes and increased risk of death.
Dietitian Jessica Cording told Yahoo Beauty that she wasn’t surprised by these findings.
‘Fried potatoes are a food that provides a lot of calories, sodium, and sometimes trans fat, but contributes minimal nutrition,’ says Cording.
‘They don’t actively do the body many favors in that respect.’
A healthier alternative to fried potatoes is to eat home made oven roasted potatoes. They can be made by slicing potatoes or sweet potatoes into wedges, and tossing them with olive oil and sea salt, and roasting them in an oven until they’r golden and crispy
She also said that other factors could have affected the results, such as how many fried potatoes a person has and what else they eat.
For example, eating just a few fries along with a salad with lean protein will lead to different health effects compared to eating a large portion of fries with, for example, a cheeseburger, says Cording.
Beth Warren, the author of Living A Real Life With Real Food, agreed with Cording.
‘It seems that those people in the study who consumed fried potatoes at least twice per week were more likely to have an overall unhealthy lifestyle,’ she said.
She suggests that the people who died at the end of the study period didn’t just die from eating french fries alone, but that they also ate poorly in general.
Cording suggests that people don’t necessarily need to avoid french fries entirely – instead, they can be enjoyed as an occasional treat as part of a healthy lifestyle, and only eating them once a month.
A healthier alternative to fried potatoes is to eat home made oven roasted potatoes.
They can be made by slicing potatoes or sweet potatoes into wedges, and tossing them with olive oil and sea salt, and roasting them in an oven until they’r golden and crispy.
Source: MailOnline
