It’s no secret that restaurant food is less healthy than cooking at home. But what makes a pasta dish at your local restaurant worse for you than the one you make at home? These reasons might shock you!
Less Healthy Options
Most restaurants only offer a handful of genuinely healthy options. Even some salads are covered in fatty dressings, meat, and cheese that, while delicious, are nowhere near as healthy as something you’d make at home.
The Cooking Method Matters
Going out to eat means you’re much more likely to consume fried food or food sauteed in a lot of butter. Again, this is fantastic for the palate but not so great for your arteries!
Alcohol Consumption
Alcohol itself isn’t good for you, but it can also lead to impaired judgment. So after one glass of wine, you’ve convinced yourself not to get the fish, swapped in the burger, and made a game plan to order dessert as a cherry on top.
The Social Experience
This one is strange and has little to do with the actual restaurant. However, going out to a restaurant is a social activity that often distracts you from practicing mindful eating.
The result is often eating more than you intended to.
Time Constraints
Many places have to get hot food out fast. Because of this, they’ll take shortcuts with premade sauces and other convenience foods that are generally less healthy than freshly made ones.
Excessive Cheese
Look, we’d never suggest that cheese isn’t excellent, but there IS such a thing as too much. But apparently, many restaurants haven’t gotten the memo and opt to smother their food in cheesy goodness that can quickly turn into unhealthy badness.
Sugary Beverages
Even if you aren’t consuming alcohol, going out to eat is often the time when people enjoy a nice soda or mocktail. It might not have the same judgment-impairing effects that alcohol does, but all that sugar certainly isn’t good for you, either.
Sneaky Calories
Restaurants don’t want you to know this. Still, often, the reason their food is so delicious is that they’ll go to town with calorie-rich ingredients like butter or cream. Does this mean you’re going to have incredible shrimp scampi? Sure, but sometimes that comes at too high a cost—and one you aren’t even aware of.
Huge Portions
You can easily control your portion sizes at home, but you can’t do that at a restaurant. And if you struggle with self-restraint, you’ll probably eat more than you need to.
Higher Sodium Content
Much like throwing in butter and cheese whenever possible, restaurants also use lots of salt to enhance the food’s flavor. Culinarily speaking, this is a phenomenal way to ensure your dish is delicious. But from a health perspective, it’s not something you want to make a habit of.
Too Much Meat
While vegetarian and vegan restaurants are becoming more commonplace, there’s still a strong emphasis on meat on most menus. Sifting through the meat options to find an equally appealing plant-based dish can be challenging, so most just stick with the steak and call it a day.
Experts Warn People to Never Refrigerate These 15 Food Items
Refrigeration prevents spoilage and may extend the shelf life of common foods and other perishable items. While we may innocently store some foods in the refrigerator, you may be surprised that you shouldn’t store all of them, as this may affect their nutritional value, taste, and texture.
Although refrigeration can help preserve certain foods, some items shouldn’t be refrigerated to maintain flavor and freshness. Avoiding these foods can ensure your food stays nutritious, fresh, and flavorful.
Here are 15 food items experts warn people never to refrigerate for optimal flavor and freshness.
Experts Warn People to Never Refrigerate These 15 Food Items
3 Foods Dogs Shouldn’t Eat
We all love our furry friends and wouldn’t mind sharing tiny bits and pieces of food when we’re eating. While this may all be innocent, and you may be giving your dog foods that are okay, certain foods can be poisonous to dogs.
Dogs may react differently to food depending on the type, ingested amount, and size.
Read on as we discuss the three common foods dogs shouldn’t eat.
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