It is not a secret that food products that are sold in different countries have different ingredients because the products need to be catered to the taste of the consumer. This difference in the ingredients of food per country is something that people are not bothered by until they go abroad.
This is especially true when going to the United Kingdom from America and vice versa. American author Vani Hari, known as Food Babe, took note of the difference in the ingredients that are used in the products from the United Kingdom and the United States.
If you are living in America and you order french fries at McDonald's, you may have gotten more than salt and vegetable oil in your fries. Quaker instant oatmeal as a breakfast meal is healthier in the United Kingdom. Food products in the United Kingdom are healthier compared to their American counterparts. The real question now is, are the differences in ingredients affecting Americans?
Kacey Birch, a Facebook user, shared Food Babe's post regarding the difference in food ingredients in countries along with the photos, and it went viral, gathering 6,200 comments, 8,500 likes, and 128,000 shares.
Food Babe stated that during her research regarding the matter, she discovered that Europe, in general, takes a "precautionary principle" approach when it comes to food additives that can be risky when consumed. They immediately add warning labels or even ban the additives. Americans, on the other hand, do not remove additives from the food supply until they are proven dangerous, and this can take years because a consumer needs to take in as much additives as they can before the effects will show.
Food Babe also noted that companies would try as much as they can to use cheaper ingredients, no matter how dangerous and unhealthy they are. Unfortunately, these cheap ingredients may affect consumers' health.
Statistics show that America spends at least three times more on healthcare than any other country. America has the highest obesity rate out of 16 developed countries.
A recent study also showed that two-thirds of Americans are overweight, and 18% of children are obese. Aside from smoking, obesity is the biggest cause of premature death in the United States.
One of the main causes of these statistics is the so-called American diet, which is full of unhealthy ingredients that are not used to the same level in other countries. Food in America is loaded with salt, sugar, bad fats, and synthetic additives.
