Hot pot ingredients should be careful of excessive phosphorus, which may damage your kidneys

Taiwanese people love to eat hot pot, especially in autumn and winter. In addition to various soup bases, the most commonly eaten ingredients are various hot pot ingredients. However, experts warn that the amount of phosphorus added to processed foods is currently unpredictable. Excessive intake will cause an imbalance in the calcium-phosphorus ratio, promote calcification of blood vessels, lead to worsening kidney disease, and increase the risk of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases. It can be called an "alternative trans fatty acid" and will become a health killer.

As the hotpot season arrives, nutritionists remind people to eat less processed foods with added phosphorus to avoid increasing the burden on the kidneys and the risk of cardiovascular disease. (Photo/Photo from this website)

Increase taste, reduce costs, and flood phosphorus-containing foods

Currently, there are nearly 600 phosphorus-containing food additives approved by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, among which the common ones are sodium metaphosphate, sodium phosphate, disodium hydrogen phosphate, sodium polyphosphate, sodium pyrophosphate and sodium triphosphate.

Jin Huimin, director of the Nutrition Department of Taipei Municipal United Hospital, pointed out that common foods containing "phosphates" include various hot pot ingredients (meatballs and dumplings), processed meats (sausages, ham, etc.), instant noodles, instant soups, various powders, ice cream and carbonated drinks.

Even traditional rice foods such as rice noodles, rice noodles, and radish cakes have low rice content, so businesses often use chemically modified starches processed with phosphoric acid, acetic acid, etc. as substitutes. In addition to using phosphorus-containing modified starch in the raw flour of pasta, bread, muffins, and biscuits, several types of phosphates may also be added as quality improvers during the manufacturing process.

Phosphorus is used in processed foods to retain water, adhere, build bridges, inhibit bacteria, increase flavor, and prevent food from clumping; when added to carbonated beverages, it can adjust color, acidify, and inhibit bacteria; when used in baking powder for bread, snacks, and biscuits, it can have a leavening effect.

In the past, the bread industry used aluminum salts as leavening agents. However, considering the impact of aluminum on dementia, the industry has switched to using phosphorus-containing leavening agents and phosphorus-containing flour improvers, which have led to harm to the heart and kidneys.

In order to improve the appearance of food, phosphates are often added when making sausages. (Photo/Photo from this website)

Excessive phosphorus intake is harmful to more than just the kidneys

Most people think that only patients with chronic kidney disease need to control their phosphorus intake. However, nutritionist Jin Huimin said that studies have shown that phosphorus is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease. When phosphorus intake increases, it will stimulate the secretion of the hormone FGF-23 (fibroblast growth factor 23) that regulates phosphorus homeostasis. Excessive levels of FGF-23 hormone can cause calcium imbalance, vascular calcification, aggravate the course of chronic kidney disease, and have a higher mortality rate.

Nutritionist Jin Huimin said that the phosphorus present in natural foods, such as whole grains, beans and nuts from plant sources, exists in the form of "phytic acid", and the human body absorption rate is about 10% to 30%; animal sources are 60%; and inorganic phosphorus used in processed foods is 100% absorbed.

Eating natural ingredients is harmless to health

What is worrying is that most additives in processed foods are compound, and some are even euphemistically called "improvers" or "thickeners". The amount of phosphorus used is currently impossible to estimate and there is no analytical value, making food safety difficult to control. Serum phosphorus is rarely measured in general health examinations, which can easily cause people to miss the opportunity for early prevention. Nutritionists remind the public to pay attention to the labels of food additives when purchasing products, and that diet should not only pursue taste, but should try to use natural, minimally processed ingredients.

If healthy people consume excessive phosphorus, it will increase the risk of worsening kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, osteoporosis and other diseases. Therefore, at a "phosphorus" seminar in the United States in February this year, scholars have suggested revising the current normal range of blood phosphorus values.

★《Dietary Guide》How to eat to benefit the kidneys?