Canned Food: Good or Bad For Your Health?

In a world where we are always hearing about the latest diets and the dangers of certain foods, canned foods are one of those items that have both lovers and haters. Is canned food healthy for you? Is eating canned food bad for your health? This is what most people are wondering. The truth is that it really depends on the canned food in general.

Canned Foods and Nutrients

One of the biggest claims out there is that by eating canned foods, you lose out on the nutrients that are naturally found in this food, whether it a meat, fruit or vegetable. However, research has proven that this is not true for most foods. For example, the act of canning food may remove some vitamin C and vitamin B...however, when foods high in these vitamins are fresh and then cooked, the cooking itself can remove some of these nutrients. There are even some studies that show certain nutrients like antioxidants are released more in the heating process when canned, such as is the case with tomatoes and corn.

Do Canned Foods Contain BPA?

BPA is a food packaging chemicals that can be found in cans. And yes, it can be found in cans. There have been several health issues that have been linked to BPA such as heart disease or type 2 diabetes. So, if you are trying to minimize your exposure to BPA, canned foods may not be the best for your home.

Canned Food Can Contain Bacteria

There is one of those claims that can happen. However, it should be noted that in commercially canned goods, it is very rare for the food to develop botulism. This is more often found in canned goods that people make at home as there was some step of the process that was not followed, allowing the food to become contaminated. Thus, this should not be a worry when buying canned goods from the grocery.

Canned Foods Often Contain Added Sugars and Salts

This is true, especially when it comes to canned meats. When you look at the natural product versus the canned, you will often see more salts, sugars and preservatives added into the canned food.

So, are they good or bad for your health? If you eat canned products from time to time, you will be fine. And to further help your health be sure to read the labels for those canned goods that have no sugar or salt added to avoid these issues.

Photo by 🇨🇭 Claudio Schwarz | @purzlbaum on Unsplash