Ready to eat food has made people's life easier. Do you agree or disagree? Why?

Ready to eat food has made people's life easier. Do you agree or disagree? Why?


Ready to eat food has made people's life easier. I wish to examine both sides and put forth my views.
The ready to eat (RTE) food products, also called convenience food, are fully or partially cooked when packed. These foods are often refrigerated and have defined food handling guidelines. These foods were initially consumed by defense people, disaster victims, trekkers, hikers, and hunters, others who required food in short time and on the travel lines. But now, they have become popular with most of the busy people in modern cities.

With ready to eat foods, people do have to skip their meals and compromise with their health. The convenience offered with the ready to eat meals provides a way out to have a healthy meal while adjusting with their tight schedule.

The major advantages of RTE food products are:

- These foods never run out of stock as lot of companies have ensured efficient supply lines for good business.
- They are convenient when you don't have a lot of time and are handy on the go. RTE Cereals are Healthy alternative breakfasts.
- RTE food is safe enough to be consumed as the companies manufacture these foodservice products under well protected conditions and they are processed under the rules and regulations laid down by the government.
- The RTE frozen fruits and vegetables can be carried to any place even where these fruits and vegetables do not grow at all. And as these fruits and vegetables are frozen, they do not lose their nutrition value.

As the norm of a two sided coin, RTE products such as processed foods and pre-packaged meals with their advantages also have disadvantages like:

- They are full of chemical preservatives that keep them fresh and make them convenience foods.
- They are full of salt, which isn't good for anyone if not moderated.
- As per health studies, they contribute to health conditions such as heart problems, high blood pressure, kidney and liver problems.

RTE meals are useful for many people in different ways. For sick, old people who are unable to make food and travelers the RTE meal is a boon. Backpackers/Hikers traveling around remote areas find these meals a convenient method of storing, packing and consuming nutrient rich food.

The fact remains that on a planet of six billion where majority of the people have less time on their hands RTE foods are here to stay and hence accepted by a large number of people ignoring its few demerits.
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    Discussion

  • RE: Ready to eat food has made people's life easier. Do you agree or disagree? Why? -Preeti Mulay (07/09/14)
  • It is both yes and no. An IT person travelling to countries where food with Indian spicy touch is rare, ready to eat food comes handy. As it is easy to carry and mostly microwaveable.

    But for concerns including regular fresh food, home food, no color and added preservatives etc ready to eat food in big no. in case of emergencies including wife out of station, cook absent, wife not feeling well, wife working for long hours some day etc. then once in a while ready to eat food is acceptable. Otherwise it is not very good for health and cannot replace fresh home cooked food.
  • RE: Ready to eat food has made people's life easier. Do you agree or disagree? Why? -Deepa Kaushik (04/16/14)
  • Ready to eat food, though delicious, but actually are not so nutritious. They have made the life of people, especially the working population simple to a good extent. There are bachelors staying away from home, students living as paying guests, working couples, people in their sickness, who used to worry for their meals. Such a situation has vanished after the arrival of such ready to eat packets.

    These food have saved the cooking time. This also gives a good relaxing time on a weekend for the housewives to get free kitchen schedule for a day.

    Coming on to their nutritive value and health concern, it becomes doubtful whether the life has become simple or is further complicated with crowding health problems. These food items contain good amount of preservatives which is hazardous for our stomach and intestinal mucosa. These food items also lead to food poisoning. Some products are also associated with the disease such as worm infestation. Again, a lot many such edibles are nothing but junk food. This is turn causes heart diseases and obesity concerns.

    In totality, this ready to eat food is more of a health issue rather than a simple living. The life gets much complicated with body’s susceptibility to get diseased.
  • Ready to eat food has made people's life easier. Do you agree or disagree? Why? -Janhvi Johorey (04/04/14)
  • Ready to eat food has made people's life easier. Do you agree or disagree? Why?


    Introduction

    Ready to eat food has made people’s lives more difficult. It certainly has not made it easier. There are many advantages of eating ready to eat food such as the less time that is needed to cook them. Another advantage is that there is a wider range of food products to choose from and you can store them more easily. They have a longer shelf life as compared to fresh food. Moreover, ready to eat food requires very little preparation. It is easy and convenient to cook. But the massive disadvantages of opting for ready to eat food make it very bad for anyone. People are going on consuming instant noodles and fried chips without realizing the immense damage it wreaks on the health of a person.

    Viewpoint

    Ready to eat food is more expensive than fresh food. A bag of crisps or a burger can cost much more than healthy snacks such as bananas and chickpeas. Moreover, the additives that are included in ready to eat food are also detrimental for your health. Chemicals such as monosodium glutamate (MSG) are added to instant noodles so that people become addicted to them. This damages the lining of your stomach and also triggers migraines in people who are sensitive to them. Another unfortunate fact is that ready to eat or packaged food is processed and it often looses important nutrients as a result of this. Consequently, people who are consuming ready to eat food on a daily or regular basis are basically eating junk food that does not benefit their bodies in any way.

    Processed or ready to eat food is high in fats, calories, sugar and salt. This is really bad for your health. It is not advisable to take a chance with your health by eating this type of food. The risks outweigh the benefits. Though processed food is readily available, it is extremely unhealthy. It can cause weight gain on a massive scale. Obesity is becoming an epidemic in the modern world. Children are getting lured by junk food and developing health problems at tender ages. Eating ready to eat food is not a good idea because you cut down on nutritious fresh food as a result of this.

    Ready to eat food also has very low fibre content. High amount of fibre in the diet is needed so that the gastrointestinal system remains healthy. Fibre is also important for ensuring that the body gets important vitamins and minerals which it needs. The chemical processes that are initiated to preserve ready to eat meals also destroy the natural nutrients present in them. For instance, freezing process involved in preparing frozen ready to eat food often blunts the flavour of the food. As a result of this, these meals are processed with extra oil and heavy amounts of sodium to retain their taste. This can damage the body and cause liver, kidney and stomach problems.

    Another reason why ready to eat meals have made life difficult is that their content tends to be improperly balanced when it comes to enough nutrients. Some meals are too high in proteins and others have too much carbohydrate. Such distorted calorific intake can have serious repercussions for the long term health of the person eating this kind of food. Ready to eat meals are also packed in portion sizes that are mammoth. Many meals contain much more food than we should be consuming in one meal. Portion sizes of ready to eat meals are so huge that problems such as inability to maintain healthy body weight are bound to crop up with long term ingestion of such foods.

    Conclusion

    On the surface, ready to eat meals save a lot of time and labour but the truth is that they are difficult to digest and they can trigger heart diseases and serious medical conditions if taken regularly. On the other hand, many harried professionals who do not have the time and energy to cook opt to go in for ready to eat meals. This is actually very dangerous in the long run because ready to eat meals are not good for your health. You will be faced with medical bills and health problems if you consume this type of food in excess. Therefore, while ready to eat meals make life easier in the short run, they can cause serious health complications as the years advance. Anything in excess is never a good idea. People should regulate their consumption of ready to eat food if they want a trouble-free life. They should opt for natural foods and fruits as these are far better for enhancing health and longevity.