How many minutes of your lifespan gets erased if you eat a hot dog?
Posted On September 1, 2021
We know that eating real foods, in control, is a Mediterranean pattern associated with a longer lifespan. It makes sense then, that eating processed food products and other unhealthy options can do the opposite. This study from the University of Michigan looked at 5,853 foods in the US diet and estimated how many minutes each would add to or shave off your life.
This is based on a study called the Global Burden of Disease, which measures morbidity associated with a person’s food choices.
One of the foods researchers measured was a standard beef hot dog on a bun. Its 61 grams of processed meat resulted in the loss of 27 minutes of healthy life, Jolliet said — but when ingredients like sodium and trans fatty acids were factored in the final value was 36 minutes lost.
Don’t worry though, you get added minutes back if you eat foods such as a Mediterranean diet (fruit, vegetables, salmon, nuts, etc). For example, eating a piece of fruit buys you back 0.1 minutes. Being active can do add sand back to your hourglass as well .
Should I Worry?
Look, don’t get caught up in the numbers that equate a food with minutes of your life. And whatever you do, do not think you can micromanage the minutes of your life with these fanciful calculations. As everyone knows, our understanding of nutrition changes by the day it seems.
For example, if this paper were published back when people still thought eggs were bad for you (some still do), you’d fret about the life you were losing by eating that egg on toast. Coffee was thought to be unhealthy for you, but now it’s thought to be very healthy for you. What will they be tomorrow?
So take this study with a giant grain of salt, because it shouldn’t change how you approach your weight and health.
The Bottom Line
Yes you need to eat well, trade in processed food products like hotdogs for healthier options, and enjoy those things in control. But the negative effect of unhealthy foods will vary, person by person, and be modified by what you eat it with, your stress levels, etc., so assigning any number to these foods will be a flat out guestimate at best.
So this is a novelty finding, interesting in a click-bate sort of way, and even the authors tell you to not get hung up on the numbers. Eat real food, leaning on veg, and do that without overconsumption to give your body its best shot at living a longer life — and to do so healthfully!
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