More dissection, now into the individual food components!

I am compelled to give a more in-depth analysis of my diet, because the previous dissection didn't seem to provide much justice for the great unhealthiness. In that case, I shall further run several commonly eaten unhealthy dishes through the Energy and Nutrient Composition of Food, also found at www.hpb.gov.sg!

#1: Hokkien Prawn Mee (eaten on day 3):

Energy (kcal) Protein (g) Total fat (g) Saturated fat (g) Dietary fibre (g) Carbohydrate (g) Cholesterol (mg) Sodium (mg) Calcium (mg) Iron (mg) Potassium (mg) Zinc (mg) Vitamin A (mcg) B-Carotene (mcg) Thiamin (mg) Riboflavin (mg) Vitamin C (mg) Water (g) Trans fatty acids (g)

HOKKIEN PRAWN MEE, fried 522 18 19 7.3 4.4 69 133 1,423 102 3.09 212 1.33 53 22 0.1 0.4 0 331

The alignment is slightly awry, but we can see that the total fat, energy, and sodium content is pretty high. To cut down on this, less oil could have been used for the fried noodles, in fact, it could be cooked through other means, such as boiling the noodles, so that less oil is used. When ordering the food, we could also request for less salt and oil and more vegetables to decrease the sodium and fat content and have more fibres and vitamins instead :) The iron content also largely exceeds the recommended amount of 15mg, so we have to take this in moderation. This dish also has no water! (HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE???) This would not be good for us as all human creatures need water, therefore, try to eat food that contain water - such as fruits like oranges, which have an extremely high water content :) Most of the energy from this food comes from the fats, and less so of the carbohydrates. Therefore, more dietary fats would be stored as body fats, so be careful when eating this.

#2 : Bubble/milk tea (oh, as I wasn't able to find the nutritional information of this beverage on the health promotion board website, I went to google it. It is imperative that we know what we consume with this cup of milky beverage, especially so with the return of the bubble tea rage)

I've been told that the pearls in bubble tea were carcinogenic. However, the cause of the carcinogenic effect was due to the addition of diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), a plasticiser that is used in the creation of plastics to give them a smooth and flexible texture. The syrup of several bubble tea were tainted by this plasticiser, causing them to be carcinogenic. The bubbletea syrups have been tested for DEHP and most of them have been tested negative, so they are relatively safe to drink, though one might want to be more careful. <<<居安思危

"Nutrients

Green and black tea, used in the making of pearl milk tea, contain antioxidants and caffeine. Different fruits are used in the making of the tea, including lychee, berries and peaches. Depending on which fruit you choose, you will get a number of different vitamins from the drink, including A, C and E. The fiber content will also be high if you use natural fruits.

Carbohydrates

Pearl milk tea is high in carbs. Fruit syrups, honey or sugar are essential ingredients and the source of most carbs in the drink. Tapioca pearls are also high in carbohydrates, and fruits and milk also add to the carb content. For those who want to cut down on calories and sugar, good alternatives include switching to skim milk, using sugar-free soy milk and using low-sugar fruits, such as berries.

Ingredients and Calories

The basic ingredients needed to make pearl milk tea are: milk, black or green tea, tapioca, fruits and a sweetener--which can be sugar, honey or syrup. The calorie count of the final drink depends on what you use to make it. For example, whole milk has 167 calories per cup, while skim milk has only 110. You can also replace the milk with soy milk, powdered milk or water if you prefer to save more calories or reduce the fat content. Table sugar has 46 calories per serving and honey has 64."

So, bubble/milk tea isn't all that bad, once in a while is fine :) Just make sure to make a choice for what goes inside the tea :)

From: http://www.livestrong.com/article/92642-pearl-milk-tea-nutrition-information/

#3: Rice-based food

Most of the food I consume are rice-based, a lot of rice in my lunches and dinner and noodles and bread, these are all huge supplies of carbohydrates. more variety would be good, so that I don't only eat the carbs, but also the essential minerals. But they are a pretty good source of energy too :)