# Lifestyles & Discussion > Personal Health & Well-Being >  Why Ramen Noodles Could Cut Your Life Short

## Suzanimal

I would avoid instant noodles.







> Holy hotplates! Instant ramen noodles, beloved cheap dinner of college kids and budget eaters everywhere, have been linked to heart attacks and diabetes. A study published in the Journal of Nutrition found that the ramen, along with other instant noodle products, may increase a persons risk for cardiometabolic syndrome  a risk factor for severe cardiovascular disease and stroke  especially in women.
> 
> This research is significant since many people are consuming instant noodles without knowing possible health risks, said lead researcher Hyun Joon Shin, MD, in a press release. Shin, a clinical cardiology fellow at Baylor University Medical Center and a nutrition epidemiology doctoral student at the Harvard School of Public Health, could not be reached for further comment.
> 
> For the study, researchers looked at the data of 10,711 adults between the ages of 19 and 64, collected via the nationally representative Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey of 2007-2009. They found that eating instant noodles  ramen, lo mein, glass, Thai, or other  twice or more a week was associated with cardiometabolic syndrome, a collection of abnormalities affecting the bodys cardiovascular, renal, and metabolic systems.
> 
> Although the specific cause of the problem was not immediately clear, Shin noted that it might stem from the fact that most instant noodle meals come packaged in Styrofoam, which contains bisphenol A (BPA), a known hormone disruptor  which is also why women could have been more affected in this study. But the food product contains plenty of unhealthy ingredients, including MSG and the chemical preservative tertiary-butylhydroquinone (TBHQ), and is also high in saturated fat.
> 
> The study focused on individuals in South Korea, Shin said, as the country has the highest per-capita number of instant noodle consumers in the world, and because, in recent years, health problems there, including heart disease and obesity, have been on the rise. But the findings appear to be quite relevant to consumers stateside too, as the United States ranked sixth globally in instant noodle sales, according to the World Instant Noodles Association, which found that the United States accounted for 4,300 billion units sold in 2013 (coming in just behind China, Indonesia, Japan, Vietnam, and India  and one spot above South Korea, in fact).
> ...

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## oyarde

Yeah well , while in the third world , I have seen lots of 90 yr old ladies who probably eat noodles every day with fresh  fish or seafood and none of them looked diabetic . So , yeah , heating up $#@! in a microwave in styrofoam may not be your best bet.

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## HVACTech

> Yeah well , while in the third world , I have seen lots of 90 yr old ladies who probably eat noodles every day with fresh  fish or seafood and none of them looked diabetic . So , yeah , heating up $#@! in a microwave in styrofoam may not be your best bet.


it could be worse, ya know.

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## amy31416

I'd love to defend a 30c meal, but wow, those are terrible and they make you feel terrible. If I indulge in noodles, I make them myself and I only eat a little.

If I need an Asian soup fix, I go for hot & sour soup--no noodles, it uses egg (like in egg drop soup), shreds of vegetables and mushrooms--it's really good, but it does call for tofu--so I only go to it in moderation.

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## mad cow

Can you microwave styrofoam?I aways get them in paper bowls or in cellophane bags I dump into paper bowls.
I always figured the styrofoam would melt in a microwave.

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## amy31416

> Can you microwave styrofoam?I aways get them in paper bowls or in cellophane bags I dump into paper bowls.
> I always figured the styrofoam would melt in a microwave.


Yes. You can microwave most styrofoam, but heating it does leach some chemicals into the product.

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## donnay

Flashback:

Instant Noodles, MSG, and Cancer
www.resourcesforlife.com/docs/item179

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## presence

http://www.macrobiotic.asia/goods_en_usd_304.html



> *Ingredients:* Flour (Hokkaido origin), Salt ("Shima-Mahsu"), Miso, Soy  sauce, Fermented condiments, Maple sugar, Spices and condiments (Garlic,  Ginger, Pepper, Red pepper), Sesame oil, Yeast extract, Kelp powder



lol - we sell stupid americans "look like chinese food", poison them slowly.






> *Ingredients:*                                                                                                  Enriched Flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron,  *Thiamine Mononitrate,* Riboflavin, Folic Acid), *Palm Oil*, Salt, Contains  Less than 2% of *Monosodium Glutamate*, *Hydrolyzed Corn Protein*, Powdered  Chicken, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Spice and Color, *Sodium Carbonate, Calcium Silicate,* *Sodium Tripolyphosphate*,* Hydrolyzed Soy  Protein,* Wheat, Soybean, Sugar, *Autolyzed Yeast Extract,* Rendered  Chicken Fat, Dried Leek Flake, Citric Acid, Natural and *Artificial  Flavor, Disodium Guanylate, Disodium Inosinate, Sodium Alginate, TBHQ  (Preservative),* Potassium Carbonate.

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## Carlybee

I can't eat that crap...msg gives me migraines

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## TheCount

I doubt the problem is the bpa or styrofoam.  It's probably the 2000 mg of sodium and god knows what else that is in those terrifying things.

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## MelissaWV

> I doubt the problem is the bpa or styrofoam.  It's probably the 2000 mg of sodium and god knows what else that is in those terrifying things.


That is part of what I was wondering.  In the ramen packs that are commonly associated with cheap college living, there's that "flavor packet" which is where nearly all of the nasty additives and sodium reside.  I used to know several people who'd boil the noodles for a second, drain them, then add butter plus the flavor packet to make a "coating" for the noodles.  Yeah.  By contrast, there are recipes that call for quick-cook noodles that have nothing to do with those packets or Styrofoam.  To read the article it seems like even those noodles can be unhealthy.

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## mad cow

Hundreds of Ramen recipes from Epicurious,Gormet and Bon Appetit.

Enjoy!

http://www.epicurious.com/tools/sear...arch=top+ramen

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## VIDEODROME

Salt, Carbs, Sugar, MSG......   what could go wrong?

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## KCIndy

Well, that does it.  I'm screwed.

I eat these things all the time.  Always microwaved, always in the styrofoam cup.  Hmmpf.

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## amy31416

When I was a kid, there was this cup ramen that I adored. It was tomato flavored with dried egg, a little corn, carrots, green onion and celery. It was very acidic...and I can't find it anymore. I've tried to recreate the broth, but haven't been able to quite yet. I've come close, but still can't quite figure out the acidic element. Tried rice vinegar, lime, lime and lemon...but I did just get a jar of tamarind paste, might have to try it again.

That was actually good ramen. I think I'd have to go to Japan to get that...the noodles aren't even the same these days. It's just gross.

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## Anti Federalist

> When I was a kid, there was this cup ramen that I adored. It was tomato flavored with dried egg, a little corn, carrots, green onion and celery. It was very acidic...and I can't find it anymore. I've tried to recreate the broth, but haven't been able to quite yet. I've come close, but still can't quite figure out the acidic element. Tried rice vinegar, lime, lime and lemon...but I did just get a jar of tamarind paste, might have to try it again.
> 
> That was actually good ramen. I think I'd have to go to Japan to get that...the noodles aren't even the same these days. It's just gross.




The year was 1968.  

We were on recon in a steaming Mekong delta.  

An overheated private removed his flak jacket, revealing a T-shirt with an iron-on sporting the Mad slogan "Up With Mini-Skirts".

Well, we all had a good laugh, even though I didn't quite understand it.  

But our momentary lapse of concentration allowed Charlie to get the drop on us.

I spent the next three years in a POW camp, forced to subsist on a thin stew of fish, vegetables, prawns, coconut milk, and four kinds of rice.  

*I came close to madness trying to find it here in the States, but they just can't get the spices right...*

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## Ronin Truth

Just got one of these at Walgreen's for only 6 bucks.

http://rapidramen.com/

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## amy31416

> Just got one of these at Walgreen's for only 6 bucks.
> 
> http://rapidramen.com/


WTF? Really? Can't put that $#@! in a regular bowl and microwave it?

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## CPUd

I've never used a whole packet on the noodles.  I may have used 5-10% of what's in there, but I have seen people dump the whole packet on the noodles.

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## Ronin Truth

> WTF? Really? Can't put that $#@! in a regular bowl and microwave it?


 Yeah, I'm pretty sure that I could but I'm a "as seen on TV" gadget junkie. Fun stuff.




> Frequently Asked Questions
> 
> *Q: Isnt ramen already rapid enough; why do I need a Rapid Ramen Cooker?* A: A package of ramen noodles instructs you to boil 2 cups of water on the stove, which takes up to 6 minutes just to boil the water. Then you add ramen noodles and cook for another 3-5 minutes, then you add the seasoning packet, finally it is ready to put into a bowl to eat. Thats 9 to 11 minutes to cook ramen noodles. The Rapid Ramen Cooker cooks ramen noodles perfectly in just 3 minutes in the microwave.
> 
> 
> *Q. Why cant I just use a regular bowl in the microwave?*
> A: Microwaving ramen in regular bowls leaves ramen mushy or undercooked. The ramen block does not fit in it adequately, you have to guess how much water to put in, and it does not cook the ramen properly. The Rapid Ramen Cooker was specifically engineered to cook perfect ramen noodles in the microwave. The patented reservoir design circulates the water for perfect heat distribution. You get delicious noodles every time.
> 
> 
> ...

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## Ronin Truth

> I've never used a whole packet on the noodles. I may have used 5-10% of what's in there, but I have seen people dump the whole packet on the noodles.


FWIW, I always use the whole packet, it would just taste pretty bland without it.  BTW, I probably only have Ramen noodles just about once a month, for a quick on the go lunch.   I wouldn't ever call them great, but they work to fill the void. <shrug>

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## Suzanimal

> Yeah, I'm pretty sure that I could but I'm a "as seen on TV" gadget junkie. Fun stuff.


Me too , I don't even like Ramen noodles and I thought that thing was pretty nifty.

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## amy31416

> Me too , I don't even like Ramen noodles and I thought that thing was pretty nifty.


I'm tempted as well, but I look at the size of my kitchen and how much the fryer that I never use aggravates me. I think I have every kitchen gadget that I need.

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