Written by: AlexanderVancel on July 14, 2013.on August 14, 2013.
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Butane and Other Startling Ingredients Not Listed On The McDonald’s Menu
Like most Americans, I have been in the situation of needing something to eat with little or no time to go home and prepare a meal. Resorting to the quicker meal option of fast food did not used to get a second thought, it was simple and cheap. What I have discovered, after reading some of the ingredients on the menu, has disturbed me and since I found out just how unhealthy the simplest item on the original menu really is, I wanted to share it with everyone.
There has been one restaurant that has stood the test of time, originally opening in 1940 with a car hop service, McDonald’s. (History of McDonald’s) The Golden Arches are a symbol for the Fast Food Industry, and they have allowed people to eat entire meals with low cost while effectively producing food in record time. This company has gotten so efficient at getting customers food to them that they even have double drive thru’s.
I am sure that most of us have fallen for the convenience factor of not having to do anything except talk into a speaker and hand over the money. Sadly, I do not think that we have really thought about what we are putting into our bodies. Now I am not advocating that everyone turn into a Vegan, I am as guilty as most Americans, but I think that we should all know what ingredients we are ingesting that are potentially harmful. While conducting some research about the McDonald’s menu, I found a few startling pieces of information to be appalling.
(McDonald’s Nutritional Information)
So, just how many calories are in a Large Fry? – 500 Calories with 25 grams of Fat
In perspective, 2 Hamburgers have the same amount of calories as a Large Fry with less fat (9 grams of Fat per burger)
The ingredients in a French Fry should be very simple; potato, salt, cooking oil. Unfortunately there are quite a few more in a McDonald’s French Fry and some of them are things we might not want to ingest, such as Dimethylpolysiloxane.
What is Dimethylpolysiloxane? (Merriam Webster) “A polymer of silicone used especially in pharmaceutical and cosmetic preparations.” The purpose stated on the McDonald’s nutrition page is an anti-foaming agent, and this is so that the fries don’t foam while they are being cooked.
The other ingredient which should stand out is in the Vegetable Oil that the Fries are prepared in called TBHQ. This is an acronym for Tertiary Butyl Hydroquinone and it has many negative side effects to our health. This compound is specifically used to preserve the food and aids in keeping the nutritional qualities of the food over time. (TBHQ)
An interesting fact about TBHQ is that it is a form of butane, yes the same chemical used for gasoline blending or sometimes propane. Not only are we consuming butane in the French Fries, but the TBHQ can cause, “delirium, ringing in ears, nausea, collapse, and vomiting. There have also been claims that TBHQ causes hyperactivity in children, rhinitis, dermatitis as well as asthma.” I am sure if there was a warning label on the package for the Fries which listed the side effects similar to medicine, there might be an outrage by the public.
Another addition to the ingredients is actually used for flavor which was only recently added to the list after a class action suit was filed in Seattle.–(CommonDreams.org) “Natural Beef Flavor” is the final ingredient added to the French Fries which gives them their distinct taste difference from other fast food chain. So, among all of the other ingredients which are harmful to us, there is actually meat in the potatoes. (McDonald’s Ingredients)
Somehow the simplest part of a value meal has become very complex and this is also frightening because all of the additional ingredients added to a simple potato. Planning ahead and packing something healthier is the better route to go which will save on daily caloric intake as well as keeping more money in our pockets. Eventually we will be in that situation again where we are desperately seeking out options with limited time for a meal but we shouldn’t look for the first fast food joint. In time, hopefully, we will see those Golden Arches for what they really are; a seller of synthesized and processed lies which are engineered specifically to get us to keep coming back for more.
